All rights reserved. No part of this periodical may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Permission for printing and for reprinting the material contained herein has been obtained by the publisher. Variations in Stand Structure and Diversity along a Soil Fertility Gradient in a Brazilian Savanna (Cerrado) in Southern Mato Grosso Forest, Range & Wildland Soils B razilian savanna, locally known as cerrado, covers approximately 20 to 25% of the total land cover of Brazil and is the second largest vegetation type following Amazonian forest (Furley and Ratter, 1988). Cerrado is composed of distinctive physiognomies that vary as a function of height, cover, and/ or density of trees (Goodland, 1971; Eiten, 1972; Furley and Ratter, 1988). The factors that affect the physiognomy and distribution of cerrado remain a subject of debate; however, seasonal variation in rainfall, soil fertility and drainage, and fire are considered the most important (Eiten, 1972; Furley and Ratter, 1988; Lopes and Cox, 1977). In terms of soil properties, variations in soil texture, water holding capacity, and chemical properties, such as pH and Al 3+ concentration, have been found to be important variables affecting cerrado physiognomy and tree species distribution (Lopes and Cox, 1977; Furley and Ratter, 1988; de Souza et al., 2007; de Assis et al., 2011). Nutrient limitation has been implicated as a primary factor inhibiting the development of forests in tropical savanna, and across large-scale fertility gradients, an increase in soil fertility can lead to an increase in the production of woody vegetation, and the density and cover of trees (Goodland and Pollard, 1973; Lopes
