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- 
