LANDSCAPE CHARACTERS 73 



Again, in marketing the timber, it might often be possible so to choose 

 the areas for the successive cuttings that at no one time would any- 

 considerable portion of the forest be entirely denuded of trees. More- 

 over if the difTerent kinds of trees were, as we have said, largely con- 

 fined each to its own landscape unit, the cuttings would not destroy 

 these units by leaving them partly wooded and partly open, but would 

 simply throw out of commission for recreation purposes a succession 

 of landscape units, but only a few at any one time. Where the appear- 

 ance of the landscape is much the dominant factor, a mixed stand of 

 trees might be handled, and the trees cut singly as they reach maturity, 

 thus at no time completely destroying any of the forest cover. 



Where parts of the ground are to be used by large numbers of 

 people, the forester must bear this in mind in choosing for these areas 

 trees which will endure the destructive effect of trampling upon the 

 ground and the undergrowth. And the landscape designer must take 

 this circumstance into account in arranging his designs and the regu- 

 lations for the use of the area, so that the crowds of people will be led 

 to use those areas which are designed to receive them, and kept away 

 from those areas where their presence in numbers will do great damage.* 

 In considering this factor of crowds, the landscape designer will find 

 that he is much restricted by it in the kinds of landscape character 

 which he may hope to create and maintain. A hemlock forest shading 

 a steep little gorge with a gravelly brook overhung with ferns, perhaps 

 with trillium and wild geraniums near the brook, and lady's slippers 

 further back under the trees, might be a landscape character natural 

 to the locality, natural to the topography, and beautiful in itself; but 

 if it is to be walked over by thousands of people daily, no amount of 

 policing, no amount of upkeep will save it from destruction. The de- 

 signer must therefore choose such characters for the separate units of 

 his larger design that with the amount of money available for policing 

 and upkeep, each character can be effectively maintained. 



Again the designer's choice of landscape character in park or private 

 place is motived by what he knows is possible in the way of future 

 control of plant growth. It often happens that the size of the place 

 on which the landscape designer is working necessitates his exemplify- 



* Cf. Landscape Parks, Chapter XI. 



