Originally published during the early part of the twentieth century, the Cambridge Manuals of Science and Literature were designed to provide concise introductions to a broad range of topics. They were written by experts for the general reader and combined a comprehensive approach to knowledge with an emphasis on accessibility. Plant-Life on Land by F. O. Bower was first published in 1911. The volume contains a guide to land-based botany, with information on plant habitats, population and physiology.