Cerrado vegetation has a high potencial for natural regeneration. With the aim of accelerating the natural regeneration of cerrado woody species in an abandoned pasture of Brachiaria decumbens in Assis, São Paulo State, Brazil, six treatments were tested: A- control area; B- grubbing; C- tillage and liming; D- wide spectrum herbicide; E- selective herbicide for grasses, and F- tillage plus pre-emergence herbicide. Two years after the treatments, the application of a wide spectrum herbicide provided a density 20% higher and a crown cover 48% higher than in the control area. The treatments with intense soil manipulation a presented a density and a crown cover lower than in the control area. A total of 32 cerrado woody species were observed regenerating, 44,8% of individuals being from Stryphnodendron obovatum.
cerrado; natural regeneration; Brachiaria decumbens; management