10 



LAN 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



LAN 



12. Lamium Multifidum. Leaves many-parted. .Native 

 of the Levant. 



13. Lamium Moschatum ; Musky Archangel. Leaves 

 cordate, blunt, smooth ; floral-leaves sessile ; calicos deeply 

 gashed. Flowers white, appearing in April. The leaves are 

 marked with white, somewhat like those of the uuiumnal 

 Cyclamen; they are smooth, and in dry weather haw a 

 musky scent, but in wet weather are fetid. 



14. Lamium Hispidulum. Stalk hispid ; leaves widely cor- 

 date, pubescent; axils one-flowered ; flowers large, white. 

 Found in the shady woods of Tennassee, North America. 



Lanstria ; a genus of the class Hexandria, order Mono- 

 gynia. GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix : none. Corolla: 

 one-petalled, subcampanulated, outwardly wool-haired; tube 

 short; border six-parted; divisions linear-lanceolate, some- 

 what spreading. Stamina: filamenta six, filiform, shorter 

 than the corolla, inserted into the base of the divisions ; 

 antherse ovate, somewhat incumbent. Pistil: gennen infe- 

 rior, top-shaped, outwardly woolly; style filiform, upright, 

 length of the stamina; stigmas three-cleft. Perica/'/i : cn<p- 

 sule ovate, three-celled. Seeds: few. ESSENTIAL CHA- 

 RACTER. Corolla : superior, woolly, longer than the fila- 

 menta ; border six-parted, somewhat spreading. Capsule: 

 three-celled. -The only known species is, 



1. Lanaria Plumosa. Root fibrous; stem woolly, upright; 

 stem-leaves sessile, nerved, smooth ; flowers terminating, in 

 a close panicle ; spathes simple. It has the habit of Wachen- 

 dorfia. N 7 ative of the Cape. 



Land. It is stated, in an able work on the landed pro- 

 perty of England, that land, viewed in the light of agricul- 

 ture, is the foundation on which it rests, the materials on 

 which it operates, and the visible source of its productions. 

 And that it may generally be considered as being composed 

 of three distinct parts ; the soil, the subsoil, and the base, or 

 substructure, on which they rest. It is added, that the soil, 

 or plant-feeding stratum, is equally various in quality and 

 depth. The soils of cultivated lands, however, have their 

 limits as to depth. These limits may, it is conceived, be fixed 

 at three and fifteen inches. For although in many instances 

 the component parts of land are pretty uniform to a greater 

 depth than fifteen inches, a uniformity of colour and vegetative 

 quality seldom reaches to that deptii. The influence of the 

 atmosphere, the fibres of vegetables living and decayed, the 

 operations of animalcula and larger animals, that inhabit 

 soils, and, above all, the powerful effects of manures, tend to 

 furnish the surface-mould with qualities which the substrata 

 have not the means of acquiring. The medium depth of 

 cultivated soils in England may, we suppose, be set down at 

 about nine inches. For although a majority of the cultivated 

 soils of the kingdom may not reach that depth, the writer is 

 of opinion that the major part might be advantageously sunk to 

 that depth. The subsoil, or ink Tveniug stratum of land, is still 

 less definite with regard to depth. In some instances, as 

 where the cultivated" soil rests upon rocks, it may be said to be 

 wanting, though, in most cases of this kind, a stratum of a 

 gravelly nature, composed of broken rock and earth, is found 

 between them. In manv cases a regular bed of gravel, sand, 

 or other earth, intervenes between the soil and the substruc- 

 ture ; while in others a uniform mass of earthy materials 

 reaches to a great depth. If therefore a definite thickness 

 or depth may be assigned to the subsoil, it must be in a 

 degree arbitrary, or without any degree of accuracy or cor- 

 rectness. It seems evident that the soil affords nourishment 

 and stability to agricultural plants, and that the subsoil 

 assigns them temperature, with respect to moisture and inter- 

 nal wiirmth. If the subsoil be of such a nature, or so situated, 



as to receive and retain more moisture than is requisite for 

 the natural growth of plants, their health is injured. If it 

 not only holds water in its own pores, but freely communi- 

 cates it to those of the soil, the more valuable plants in agri- 

 culture will give way to ranker herbage, let the surface soil 

 be w-i.it it may. On the contrary, if an open stratum of 

 sufficient deptii intervenes between the cultivated soil and 

 the base, to permit the superfluous moisture which filters 



ii the soil to pass off, the plants in cultivation will be 



,1 from collected moisture in the immediate region of 

 their feeding fibres, though the substructure may be charged 

 to the lull with water. Ileuee, where nature has not furnished 

 land with this valuable interstratum, it is the business of art 

 to remedy the defect; which is generally best done by drain- 

 ihe superfluous moisture to a sufficient depth to pre- 

 vent ils evil effects on the soil, and thereby supplying the 

 required stratum. In doing this, the artist must be led by 



en properties of the base, and he can seldom lower it 

 to any determinate or arbitrary depth. Nevertheless, he 

 should endeavour to form an adequate idea of the medium 

 depth required ; in doing which, much depends on the specific 

 quality of the soil. Sand will hold up water that is lodged 

 at its base to a much greater height than uiavel ; a stratum 

 of which, one foot deep, forms a drier subsoil than a bed of 

 sand of twice or three times that thickness. But clean sand 

 1 is rin ly found in land, sand and gravelly loams 

 being the most, common in absorbent subsoils; and these are 

 capable of raising and holding up water to a considerable 

 height. Let us therefore admit that effective subsoils may 

 vary from one to tv.'o feet, and fix the medium depth at 

 eighteen inches; by thus placing the mean depth of soils at 

 nine inches, and that of subsoils at eighteen inches, we shall 

 place the. base or substructure of the land at twenty-seven 

 inches beneath its surface ; which is a depth of land equally 

 conformable with theory and with practice. To this depth 

 drains may be sunk at a moderate expense ; especially covered 

 stone drains, which would be effectual, and yet not be liable 

 to injury in tillage. In the practice of skilful workmen, the 

 depth of ordinary subsoil drains varies from eighteen inches 

 to three feet, according to the circumstances of the given 

 case, and the method of draining employed. After this 

 general view of the component parts of land, and of their due 

 arrangement, the common varieties of it, as they are given by 

 soil, subsoil, and base, remain to be considered. We shall 

 divide them into classes, and mark the varieties of each. 

 First Class. This comprehends such lands as are liable to 

 surface-water only, with their absorbent strata (if any) open, 

 so as freely to discharge the superfluous water that falls upon 

 them. The varieties of this are, first, where the soil, the 

 subsoil, and the base, are repellent, or in a state of moistness 

 impenetrable by water; as clay and strong deep clayey loam. 

 The second, where the soil is repellent, the subsoil absor- 

 bent, and the base repellent. The third, where the soil is 

 repellent, the subsoil and base absorbent, or in a state of 

 moistness conducting water; as sand, gravel, open rock, and 

 the lighter more open loams. The fourth, where the soil, the 

 subsoil, and the base, are absorbent. The fifth, where the 

 soil and the subsoil are absorbent, but the base repellent. And 

 the sixth, where the soil is absorbent, the subsoil repellent, 

 and the base absorbent or repellent. Second Class. This 

 includes such lands as are liable to surface-water only, with 

 their absorbent strata closed, or permitting an imperfect dis- 



, either for want of sufficient descent, or by reason of 

 impervious strata, or beds of impenetrable materials. The 

 varieties of which are, first, where the soil is repellent, the 

 subsoil absorbent, and the base repellent or absorbent. The 



