348 MR. В. 8. ADAMSON : AN ECOLOGICAL STUDY 
VEGETATION. 
The natural and semi-natural woodlands of England have recently been 
classified and a scheme drawn up showing their relationships to one another *. 
In general the woodlands fall into two main series—an Oak and Birch series, 
and an Ash and Beech series. The former are developed on siliecous soils, 
and the latter on calcareous ones. — Each series is further subdivided. 
Leaving out of consideration those types of wood which occur in up'and 
regions only and those on peaty or acid soils, the divisions are * :— 
Oak and Birch Series. 
(1) Quercus Robur Woods on deep damp clays and Тоат. 
(la) Oak-Hazel Copse, a subtype formed by coppicing. 
(2) Oak Woods (Quercus Robur and Q. sessiliflora) on deep sands in 
lowlands. 
(3) Quercus sessiliflora Woods on shaliow siliecous soils. 
Ash and Beech Series. 
(1) Ash Woods on limestones with shallow calcareous soils. 
(2) Ash-Oak Woods on damp marls. 
(2a) (Ash) Oak-Hazel Copse, a subtype due to coppicing with 
removal of standard Ash. 
(3) Beech Woods on chalk. 
If Gamlingay Wood is looked on in the light of the above classification it 
will be shown that that part of it which is on the calcareous clay or marl 
belongs to the second division of the Ash and Beech series, namely, an Ash- 
Oak wood. That part on the non-caleareous loam belongs to the first 
division of the Oak and Birch series, а Quercus Robur wood. The present 
appearance of the .lsA-Oak wood as a wood with Oaks as the dominant 
standard tree is due to the system of forest cultivation so extensively 
followed in Southern England. The wood is periodically coppiced and every- 
thing almost but the oaks cut down; as a result of this, practically all the 
Ash, which is really quite abundant, at the present day is in the form of shrubs 
growing from coppiced stools. Thus it belongs to the subtype of the uIsh- 
Oak Wood, the (lsh) Oak-LHazel Copse. Moreover, as will be shown, the 
ground flora and many of the shrubs are in support of the view that this 
wood belongs to the Beech and Ash series +. Ash-Oak woods have been 
described by Mossf in Somerset on calcareous clays, under the name of 
Oak- Hazel. Woods. Moss points out the close resemblance of these woods 
to the Ash Wood type. The soil conditions of these Somerset Oak- Hazel 
* Moss, Rankin, and Tansley, 1910, p. 146. T Moss, 1907, p. 51. 
