54 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Stage, man and the herds and flocks that are necessary for his 

 comfort, as well as birds and animals protected for his sport, 

 have played a leading part. The forest was destroyed in war- 

 fare and in peace as being the harbour of enemies of the 

 people, and its place became the haunt of the grazier and 

 farmer. It was ruthlessly destroyed to help the farmer when 

 the value of sheep was high. The vegetation that succeeded 

 was a sub-climax of grassland, of dwarf shrubs, or of cultivated 

 land. In the grassland where man's influence was not too 

 strongly felt, the various species would tend to sort themselves 

 out so that each occupied the position that was best suited 

 to its development. Within certain limits a normal form of 

 succession would take place. The same would occur among 

 the dwarf shrubs. The removal of man, the main inhibiting 

 factor, would result, after considerable time, in a continuation 

 of the checked succession. Forest formations would occupy 

 the land except where excessive exposure, rock, or water pre- 

 vented their growth, In course of time the tree formations or 

 different types of forest would arrange themselves according to 

 the factors of the locality, but the initial stocking would be 

 greatly influenced by the proximity of seed-bearers. Many 

 of the subordinate associations formed by these at the 

 beginning would lose their sites and give way before more 

 dominant associations. The latter would ultimately form 

 distinct associations in the climax formations. They would 

 depend on suitability to the habitat for their dominance. 

 Smaller divisions or societies would occur among them owing 

 to local variations of the habitat, and the chance scattering 

 of seed in one place. 



The forester in forming his plantations wishes to jump over 

 those various sub-climaxes that would exist before forest was 

 reached, and at the same time to arrive at what could remain 

 under natural conditions as a dominant association with 

 societies in it dependent on habitat. When he achieves this 

 end he may be assured that within the limitations imposed by 

 migration barriers, he has got the best possible form of tree- 

 growth for his area. His selection will be the strongest form 

 of vegetation within the country that could exist under the 

 conditions of the habitat. 



As a means of arriving at this end there has been a certain 

 amount of attention paid to the study of those conditions which 



