I gave that a try... about 50% transparency on the scrub symbols layer... plus I added the (subtle) background to the hills and around the river on the west side of the map.



As always, a closer look is available here:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v5...crub-Large.jpg

It pulls the symbols back just enough to deliver the desired effect without overwhelming the map. Thanks for that suggestion. I'm certainly open to others!!