BOTANY OF THE LAKE DISTRICT 135 



To the casual visitor, the vegetation of this region falls obviously into 

 two parts, the grasslands of the hills and the woodlands in the dales. The 

 natural dividing line between these regions was originally in the neighbour- 

 hood of 2,000 feet. It is probably now not more than 1 ,700 feet in 

 the centre of the district, as shown by the relic high level oak woods in 

 Keskadale and elsewhere. On the exposed western margin of the hills, it 

 may have been as low as 800 feet under natural conditions, and in some places 

 it appears now to be only 500 to 600 feet. Owing to the naturally steep slopes, 

 the regions above these limits were probably always natural grasslands, and 

 extensive moorlands like those of the Pennines are uncommon. 



The climax plant community at lower levels is undoubtedly woodland 

 dominated by oak (Quercus sessilis). Although here, as elsewhere, the woods 

 are much modified by planting, fragments remain in the more remote dales 

 which appear to be in a primitive condition, as judged by their histories and by 

 the absence of any signs of tree felling. All the best examples agree in 

 possessing among the trees an exceptionally high proportion of oak (95 to 

 98 per cent.). The only usual associates are Ilex and Pyrus aucuparia. 

 These primitive woods are generally on shallow soils. 



In most cases, a varied assortment of trees is associated with evidence of 

 disturbance of the climax forest by animals or man, or else with the probability 

 that the mixed woodland represents a developmental type. In the latter case, 

 the wood is colonising scree slopes, gravel deltas or lake shore spits, and 

 disused quarry wastes. The early stages of such woodlands normally include 

 Betula pubescens and sallows. Ash (usually attended by Pyrus aucuparia) 

 comes in at an early stage, and is the characteristic feature of these developing 

 woodlands. The soils are always comparatively unleached and only slightly 

 acid. A parallel feature of Lake District oak woods, which is related to 

 similar factors, is the presence of ash ' streaks ' following the broken tracks 

 of intermittent torrents. Ash also occurs in the damper parts of the oak woods. 



It is of interest to consider certain special cases. In several places ash-birch 

 woods are found (e.g., west of Ennerdale), and the Naddle Forest, by Hawes 

 Water, is an extensive oak-ash-birch wood. All of these woods are of an open 

 character ; they show evidence of grazing and are developed from old scree 

 slopes. It is probable, then, that animal and human interference have prevented 

 the development or the maintenance of the climax oak woods, and the wood- 

 lands have, therefore, tended to remain in an earlier developmental stage. 



The woodlands in the south-east of the Lake District, round Windermere, 

 are typical of the woods on lower slopes and deeper soils. This area is of 

 particular interest as the most heavily wooded part of Britain, and it owes this 

 distinction to the persistence of local industries depending upon the woodlands. 

 Charcoal burning is still carried on in order to supply the iron works at Back- 

 barrow, and the abundance of ' bloomery ' sites as well as historical evidence 

 show that this industry has persisted from the earliest historical times. 



With the introduction of modern methods of iron smelting at Barrow, the 

 woodland products were diverted for a time to the making of gunpowder, 

 cotton ' bobbins ' and baskets, although these industries are now extinct. 

 To meet these local needs, the woods were generally maintained as some form of 

 coppice, and although, in the last 50 years, many of them have been allowed 



