14 ENGLISH ESTATE FORESTRY 



as a mark of importance and indicate the extent of his 

 possessions. In a country already thickly wooded by nature, 

 the planting of single trees and clumps would be superfluous, 

 and, when the geometric style was first introduced, England 

 generally was probably well wooded, and presented few 

 opportunities for what we now term " landscape gardening." 

 The style once introduced, however, it naturally outlived the 

 period which saw its birth, and it was not until a truer 

 conception of what constituted natural beauty was attained 

 that a change of opinion more in accordance with refined 

 taste arose. 



The natural style of landscape gardening, under the 

 direction of the immortal " Capability Brown," reached its 

 highest stage of development about 1780. The " change in 

 taste," as it was termed, was probably nothing more than 

 a desire to be in the fashion, and the majority of estate 

 owners who called in and followed the advice of this pro- 

 fessor had as little idea of the merits or demerits of the one 

 style as they had of the other. When Brown laid down 

 the law that certain ground should be planted, planted it was 

 forthwith, and in this way large areas of ground were 

 covered with wood which had previously been bare ground 

 or common. Many of the woods thus formed were doubtless 

 small, and consisted of belts and clumps which had, and have, 

 little economic importance. But when once a wood has been 

 planted there is often a tendency on the part of the owner 

 to enlarge it, and this in many cases has been done where 

 the surrounding ground favoured such a step. In Brown's 

 time the only trees available for planting on poor ground 

 were beech and Scots fir, for the larch and other conifers 

 had not then become available for extensive planting. Nearly 

 all Brown's clumps and park timber on poor ground were 

 composed of these species, but more especially the former, 

 and they stand to-day as monuments of his work, whether 

 good, bad, or indifferent. Spruce, silver fir, oak, and Spanish 

 chestnut were also used to a less degree, but from natural 

 causes and other reasons they are not so conspicuous to-day 

 as beech and Scots fir. 



Another reason for the increase of plantations about this 

 time may be traced to the growing need for timber and 



