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The density and diversity of woody plant species were studied within grazing, cultivation and charcoal production land-use areas in a multiple-use savanna woodland, central Uganda, using 75 plots with an area of 0.1 ha (Whittaker plots). Plant density was significantly higher under charcoal production (7131 ± 755 plants/ha) and cultivation (6612 ± 665 plants/ha) compared with the grazing lands (4152 ± 525 plants/ha). At the plot level, species richness and Fisher's alpha diversity (α) were relatively low, ranging 2–31 species and 0.34–6.34, respectively, but both were significantly higher under charcoal production and cultivation compared with grazing. Similarly, cumulative species richness and Fisher's alpha diversity were higher under charcoal production and cultivation compared with grazing. Community species composition differed significantly (Global RANOSIM = 0.14, p = 0.001; ANOSIM, ANalysis Of SIMilarity) among land uses. However, the distance of sampling plots away from households, the assumed source of human disturbance to woodlands, accounts for a very small fraction (
