6o Forestry Quarterly. 



where there are approximately 450,00x3 acres of woodland equal 

 to 11.5% of the area and constituting more than one-quarter of 

 the whole area of English woodlands. With a few exceptions, 

 this is not under management, but the system of cutting has led 

 to the coppice under standard type. These woodlands are main- 

 tained chiefly for the preservation of pheasants. The woods of 

 the west and north are mostly in a less artificial condition, but 

 practically no virgin forest remains. As a whole, the woodlands 

 of the country, at any rate of England, may be regarded as semi- 

 natural woods, retaining the essential characters and the flora of 

 the primitive forests from which they are derived. 



The classification of the plant formations of the British Isles 

 is based upon the character of the soil. The fifteen formations 

 thus segregated are described through 207 of the 366 pages of 

 the book. In England the clays and loams are very extensive, 

 particularly in the Midland and in the southeastern portion, and 

 they are now very largely under permanent pastures. These soils 

 are supposed to have been originally covered with the Pedunculate 

 Oak association. Where now existent the association is reduced 

 almost entirely to coppice. The soils of the coarser sands and 

 sandstones occur almost exclusively in the southern, eastern and 

 Midland portion of England. The characteristic vegetation of 

 these soils is indicated by the Calluna heath and by the Grass 

 heath (heath pasture). When trees occur on the Calluna heath, 

 the dominant species are the Pedunculate Oak, the Sessile Oak 

 and the Beech. Birches often associate with these and sometimes 

 they alone dominate considerable areas. In England the Scotch 

 Pine has escaped from plantations and established itself on the 

 heath, while in Scotland it is a natural inhabitant of the for- 

 mation. It is not definitely known that the heath was originally 

 forested, but in some cases it is certain that it represents the 

 climax vegetation. 



The siliceous soils derived from the older, metamorphic, non- 

 calcareous rock are separated from the sands of more recent 

 geological periods, such as those on which the Calluna heath is 

 the most extensive. The older siliceous soils contain less silica, 

 are frequently of finer texture and, when well aerated, form mild 

 humus in contrast to the acid humus of the Calluna heath. They 

 are particularly well developed in the north of England, and are 



