240 ENGLISH ESTATE FORESTRY 



description. Such are my favourite ash trees when the 

 summer sunshine sparkles on them. It is their bare silvered 

 trunks that give the special charm to these hanging woods." 



Although the best features of the ash are only brought 

 out when the tree approaches maturity, yet, in the form of 

 saplings or coppice, it adds greatly to the beauty of any wood 

 or copse during the summer months. The straight slender 

 rods, with their pairs of pinnate leaves, give a lightness to 

 the under-wood which is absent from other species, and in old 

 oak woods especially this effect is produced to a greater 

 extent by the massive trunks of the old trees, and the flecks 

 of sunlight which penetrate their crowns. 



Probably the ash is seen at its best during the summer 

 months, when its foliage is fully developed, and has acquired 

 that open, perforated leaf surface which gives the tree such 

 a beautiful appearance when seen at a distance of 100 

 yards or so, or even farther, and which resembles a lace- 

 work screen more than anything else. For this reason, the 

 ash is particularly adapted for clothing the face of banks 

 and slopes, where depth must be obtained by the open order 

 of the trees, but where the crowns of beech or oak would 

 become too heavy and rounded. The leaves of the ash, or 

 rather its leaflets for the leaf is a compound one have 

 just that amount of healthy vigour which saves them from 

 becoming gross and rank. The autumn tints are not 

 striking, and in certain seasons are entirely absent, the 

 leaflets falling off the stalk while still green in late October. 

 Not the least of the attractions of this tree are the lichens 

 and liverworts, which mottle its trunk with browns, olives, 

 greys, and scarlets. 



ORNAMENTAL TREES AND SHRUBS IN WOODLANDS. 



So far, only the characters of the common forest trees of 

 English woodlands have been dealt with. A few remarks 

 may now be devoted to those trees and shrubs which are 

 usually regarded as being of little or no economic value, but 

 which are planted for their ornamental effect alone. Refer- 

 ence has already been made to the practice of planting 



