- FC was established after WW1 to create a national timber reserve as soon as possible
- Problem: best land was in use for agriculture
- Forestry was pushed into the poor upland areas of Britain especially Scotland
- The FC had to find ways to make planting on these site possible
- Research concentrated on two areas: Choice of Species and ground preparation
- The outcome: the coincidence of Sitka and ploughing made the large-scale afforestation of the post-war decades possible because it was economic
- Downside: emergence of geometric green patches on hill slopes
