This chapter describes how understandings of the "rural" have progressed from a focus on either decline or amenity, whereby these more simplified understandings can be seen to have had an impact on rural policy development. The chapter argues that rural areas, including forests, need to be understood in relation to both production and integration with urban landscapes. It thus illustrates the role of both historical processes and policy in creating current understandings of the rural: drawing upon an example from the Swedish case, it amongst others shows that a redistributive tax system has played a larger and more crucial role than rural policy in retaining active rural areas in Sweden.