Few countries have been endowed with such an abundance of resources and natural beauty as the United States. The great outdoors was the setting in which our people developed and grew and built this mighty nation. The use of natural resources has enabled us to attain a position of economic well-being unsurpassed in world history. Now we have the opportunity as well as the responsibility to manage our resources for beauty as well as for use.

In his message to Congress on natural beauty, delivered on February 8, 1965, President Johnson presented a stirring challenge to all Americans. He called for a new conservation, a creative conservation of restoration and innovation. He said that this new conservation must be concerned with the relation between man and the natural world and that beauty and man's opportunity to enjoy it must assume a major role.

Natural beauty is perceived by all of us in the large grandeur of a wilderness, the small world of a pond, the stillness of a desert, the cry of birds in a flowering meadow, and all the other sights and sounds of the American outdoors. Over the years, the Forest Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, State Foresters, and other public and private resource managers have been developing a philosophy which integrates beauty with the managed use of natural resources. This philosophy includes an understanding of the productive forest and range at work in meeting human needs, and an appreciation of the harmonious interplay among the elements and uses of the forest environment. It emphasizes the fuller appreciation of beauty that comes when nature and land use are viewed with an understanding eye. This understanding sees elements of beauty, order, and design in natural scenes and in the everyday drama of resource use that might otherwise go unseen. Then every trip to the out-of-doors becomes more meaningful and enjoyable. The application of esthetic principles to land management gives form and substance to the philosophy of beauty and utility.

Those who heed the President's call to action will find much to be done and much to work with. Well-managed forests and rangelands can be the rule. Scenic and esthetic qualities of outdoor recreation areas can be improved. Highway corridors, structures, and trails can be made attractive through design, plantings, and maintenance. New travel routes can be located to display the most interesting features of the land and its use. Streams, lakes, and waterfront areas can be managed to preserve and enhance their natural attractiveness. And people can learn to understand and appreciate their outdoor environment in terms of beauty and use.

CONCEPTS OF BEAUTY FOR LAND USE

John Ormsbee Simonds, in his book "Landscape Architecturethe Shaping of Man's Natural Environment," says "There are relatively few areas that can be reserved in their pristine state or developed solely to display the most of their natural beauty. Man generally considers land in terms of use."

As part of our Nation's heritage, several million acres of wilderness, with their spectacular beauty, have been and will be set aside and maintained in their natural state for man's enjoyment. However, the present uses of other, more intensively managed lands may need to be altered to provide for beauty. In the future of forests and rangelands, their trees and other vegetation can play a significant role in the achievement of beauty. Their uses will have to be managed so that they function in an orderly and appropriate manner, and still, remain a delight to the eye.

Those who would seek to capture or enhance natural beauty in the countryside can call upon three basic concepts often used by the environmental-planning professions:

*Variety. Variety produces that changing quality of the landscape that captures and holds one's interest. A continuing diversity or change leads one to anticipate something different and delightful around the next bend in the trail or beyond the next ridge. In planning for variety one should ask, "How will people use or view this?" Is it both functional and interesting, or is it too much like that which has gone before? Variety is truly the spice of life, but it must not be allowed to run wild. It must be balanced with just the right amount of repetition to prevent chaos and confusion.

*Harmony. This may appear as a blending of natural or natural and man-induced features, a continuity of complementary shapes, textures, and colors, a smooth flow from one part to another. Harmony is that which is right, which fits, which belongs. When establishing a harmonious environment we must preserve the best parts of the existing, remove those items which are conflicting or incongruous, and sometimes introduce appropriate foreign materials to relieve dullness or monotony.

*Contrast. Contrast is that something which is strikingly different, which holds the eye and creates a definite comparison. Sometimes it appears like a sudden but appropriate exclamation point or shock effect to stimulate the senses. This concept should be used sparingly and with discretion. It can be a most refreshing and long-remembered part of a visitor's experience. Contrast can focus attention upon the best or the acceptable and in so doing, draw attention from the undesirable. However, one must guard against its being overdone and becoming garish or distasteful.