LEAF-MOULD. 



181 



stones, tlie whole shoot is covered 

 with earth to the depth of half an | 

 inch or an inch, according as the ' 

 soil is sandy or loamy, and a shoot ' 

 is afterwards sent np from each 

 eye, so that a shoot thus laid down , 

 produces nearly as many plants as 

 it has buds. This practice is much | 

 more successful with some kinds of j 

 shrubs and trees than with others, 

 but it is not at all applicable to j 

 herbaceous plants. Some shrubs, 

 such as the Honeysuckle, Tecoma, 

 Wistaria, &c,, which produce long 

 shoots, and continue growing 

 throughout the summer, may be 

 pegged down as they grow, and a 

 slit made behind each bud, or every 

 other bud, covering the joint so 

 treated with soil. A great many 

 plants are thus produced from a 

 single shoot in one season, more 

 especially in moist, warm summers, 

 or in a warm situation, where water 

 is applied artificially. Layers of 

 every description root most freely in 

 sandy soil, in an open airy situation ; 

 and those which are difficult to root 

 succeed best where the soil is almost 

 a pure eand. The layering of 

 Carnations is an operation par- 

 ticularly suitable for ladies, more 

 especially when the plants are in 

 pots, as they can be placed on a 

 table or bench, and there will be no 

 occasion for stooping. 



Laying i:n' by the heels. — ■ 

 When plants are taken up for 

 removal, if they cannot be planted 

 immediately, they are generally laid 

 together horizontally in a trench 

 made for that purpose, and the 

 roots covered with earth. This is 

 done to prevent the roots from 

 becoming dry and withered, which 

 they would do if they were left 

 exposed to the open air for any 

 length of time. 



Leadwort. — See Plumba'go. 



Leaf-Mould is formed of decayed 



leaves, and is one of the most useful 

 materials in the culture of flowers. 

 All plants whatever -wdll grow in. 

 leaf-mould, mixed with loam and 

 sand, and many plants will grow in 

 leaf-mould alone. It is particularly 

 useful for growing plants in pots, 

 especially Pelargoniums, Fuchsias, 

 Petunias, Brugmansias, &c.; and in 

 many cases it may be used as a 

 substitute for heath-mould. Leaf- 

 mould is formed by sweeping up the 

 leaves of trees and shrubs in autumn 

 and winter, and laying them in 

 heaps in a convenient place to rot, 

 turning them over occasionally, so 

 as to expose continually a new 

 surface to the action of the air. At 

 the end of a year, a considerable 

 portion of the leaves will have 

 become mould, and maybe separated 

 from the rest by sifting ; and, at 

 the end of two years, the whole will 

 have become one mass of mould. If 

 it were required to grow any kind of 

 herbaceous plants to the largest 

 possible size, within a given time, 

 I do not know how it could be 

 better done than by placing the 

 plant in the centre of a bed, three 

 or four cubical yards deep, of leaf- 

 mould mixed with coarse sand, 

 thoroughly drained by a stratum of 

 stones at the bottom, and amply 

 supplied with water. Pine -apples 

 in France, and melons in Holland, 

 are grown to an enormous size in 

 only leaf-mould and rough sand. 

 The best substitute for leaf-mould is 

 heath-mould, that is to say, peat 

 and sand, mixed with sifted very 

 rotten dung. Or rotten dung and 

 sand may be used, if the dung has 

 become so thoroughl}^ decayed as to 

 fonn a kind of mould. 



Leather Wood. — See Di'rca. 



Leaves are, next to roots, the 

 most important parts of plants. 

 With a root a plant, will begin to 

 grow, but unless the leaves which it 



