HIGHWOODS, COPSES, ETC. 277 



the essential conditions, subsequent to selection 

 of suitable kinds of trees for the given soil and 

 situation, is that the more light-demanding tree 

 or trees must either be of more rapid growth in 

 height than the others, or else that the former 

 must be protected against the encroachments of 

 these latter by means of thinning. 



That most of the British woodlands are not 

 stocked with a sufficiently large number of indi- 

 vidual plants is an undeniable fact, which applies 

 alike to highwoods, copses, and coppices. And 

 yet, at the same time, on account of the excessive 

 branch formation favoured under the arboricul- 

 tural methods hitherto prevailing, it sometimes 

 happens that the woods may even be crowded, 

 which seems rather paradoxical. Woods that 

 have been over-thinned may spread so much in 

 the crown that the damage done can never be 

 quite repaired. And much the same applies to 

 wide planting, particularly with regard to conifer 

 crops, whose dead branches form hard, horny 

 knots in the stem, which depreciate the value 

 of the bole for technical purposes. To have the 

 best monetary returns from the mature crop it 

 is essential that plantations shall have been sub- 



