Background and Aims Herbaceous-shrubby communities in the Gran Sabana (Great Savanna) Plateau of Venezuela grow under non-zonal conditions. We speculated that this would produce specific patterns of reproductive phenological within these different soil-climate-vegetation associations. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that the reproductive phenology patterns of four herbaceous-shrubby communities are determined by climate, plant life-forms and soil properties. Methodology The reproductive phenology of 233 plant species of the Gran Sabana Plateau of the Venezuelan Guayana Highlands was studied taking into account their life-forms (i.e. trees, shrubs, climbers, annual herbs, perennial herbs, epiphytes and parasites/hemiparasites) in four herbaceous-shrubby communities (i) shrubland, (ii) secondary bush, (iii) savanna and (iv) broad-leaved meadow. Patterns of flowering, occurrence of unripe fruit and ripe fruit were studied at two levels of intensity for 24 months within a five year span. Two phenological records for each month of the year and between two and four replicates for each community type were made. Randomly selected 2- 3 Ha plots were used. General phenological patterns were established using less than 25 % of the plants of each species in each plot to give the total duration of each phenological phase. High intensity phenological patterns were established using more than 25 % of individuals in each plot to establish times of high abundance of flowers, presence of unripe fruit and/or ripe fruit on individual plants. This generated phenological peaks for each species. Principal results Non-seasonality of general flowering and unripe fruiting in each of the four communities was related to non-seasonal flowering and unripe fruiting patterns in the plant life-forms studied and to low variation in precipitation throughout the year. Flowering activity in the shrubland and broad-leaved meadow peaked twice. The bush community had only one flowering peak while in the savanna gave a non-seasonal flowering ...