17] 



LANDSCAPES AND VEGETATION 



559 



so arid or steep as to be unsuitable for grazing and fail to grow trees. 

 Examples include rocky foothills, rough mountain land, bare rock 

 outcrops, coastal sand-dunes, and many swamps and marshes. 



l-iu. 17L). An L.xainpk i)t L la^,-, \111 land. (Phot. U.S.D.A.) 



Fig. 180 illustrates all eight land-use capability classes. It may 

 readily be seen that farms are concerned largely with group A 

 (Classes I to IV), pasturage and forests primarily with group B 

 (Classes V to VII), and wildlife largely, but by no means exclusively, 

 with group C (Class VIII). Areas of Class VIII may, moreover, 

 have important recreational, aesthetic, or watershed-protection values, 

 as was pointed out by Dr. Edward H. Graham [in lift.). They may 

 furthermore be of great scientific interest. Open waters may also 

 be looked upon as belonging to Class VIII, as they are best adapted 

 to the production of undomesticated plants and animals. Actually, 

 neglect can cause even the best and most productive agricultural 

 land to deteriorate, through erosion, practically to the bottom of the 

 scale, as is illustrated in Fig. 181, which should serve as a severe 

 warning to anv who might ignore conservation practices or at least 

 reasonable caution. 



