238 



PLANT RELATIONS. 



cease to be unfavorable to forest growth. The forest does 

 not begin abruptly upon the eastern limit of the prairie, 

 but appears first as clumps of trees, with interspersed 

 meadows, and finally as a dense forest mass. Of course, the 

 forest display of the eastern border of the prairie has been 

 immensely interfered with by man. 



165. Pastures. This term is applied to areas drier than 



FIG. 199. A juniper heath interspersed with pastures. The growths of juniper are 

 very dense, excluding all other vegetation, and the grass or pasture areas are too 

 dry to form real meadows. After COWLES. 



natural meadows, and includes the meadows formed or con- 

 trolled by man (see Fig. 199). They may be natural, or 

 derived from natural meadow areas, or from forest clear- 

 ings ; therefore they are often maintained in conditions 

 which, if not interfered with, would not produce a meadow. 

 In general, the pasture diifers from the natural meadow in 

 being drier, a fact often due to drainage, and in develop- 

 ing lower and more open vegetation. Naturally the plant 



