A scheme proposed by M. Westoby in 1998 to describe the ecological strategy of plant species in terms of three parameters: specific leaf area (L), height of the plant at maturity (H), and seed mass (S). The strategy of a species is thus depicted by its position in the three-dimensional space bounded by the axes for the three variables. It is argued that, for example, L reflects whether the species is a good competitor or is more able to tolerate stress, and that H and S represent two aspects of coping with disturbance. The chief advantage is that any plant species can be placed objectively in the scheme by determining the easily measured variables, thus enabling comparisons to be made between different studies and geographical regions. Compare csr strategies.