216 ENGLISH ESTATE FORESTRY 



also useful for such places ; but the great point, of course, is 

 to avoid the expense of fencing if possible, and broom or 

 gorse can be usually raised on thinly grazed ground without it. 



THE INTERIOR OF WOODS. 



So far, the general effect of trees in the open, or when 

 viewed from a distance, has been studied. A few words may 

 now be devoted to the landscape effect of trees when grown 

 in large masses, such as woods or forests, and when viewed 

 from within or at a short distance away. Many might 

 suppose that woods have no landscape effect when seen from 

 their interiors, and, in the general sense of the term, perhaps 

 they have not. But as the interior of woods may be equally 

 a source of enjoyment to the admirer of natural scenery, as 

 an extensive prospect, this chapter would not be complete 

 without a reference to it. 



The most important elements of woodland scenery may 

 be said to be the general distribution of trees, and the 

 character and variety they exhibit. So far as arrangement 

 goes, a desirable feature of woodland scenery are glades and 

 small openings, which enable the eye to catch the effects of 

 light and shade on stem or foliage. In such spots the 

 seclusion of the forest is combined with the green sward and 

 rich masses of foliage associated with the park, and the 

 contrast existing between the two heightens the effect of 

 each. Such glades and openings are also rendered more 

 attractive by the invariable existence in them of the smaller 

 trees and shrubs, such as thorns, brambles, briers, etc., which 

 add variety to the scene and give nearer detail than is 

 afforded by trees alone. In a natural forest its glades often 

 occupy the sites of swamps or marshy patches, through the 

 centre of which a small stream often runs, and they then 

 owe their open character to their unfitness for the growth of 

 ordinary forest trees, as much as to anything else. But 

 even more picturesque still are those glades which follow the 

 line of, or are formed by a wide ride or rough green road 

 running down a hollow or trough, and which is frequently 

 bordered by bracken and other low growth of that kind. 

 The sloping banks on either side enable a wider view of tree 



