photographs, maps, and field observations. The opening of this volume presents editorial notes, publishing details, a contents overview, and a notice of a small exhibition, then moves into three substantial essays. Richard Buch traces the Leipzig land’s formation from ancient variscan roots and Rotliegend volcanism through the Zechstein and Buntsandstein eras, the subtropical Tertiary with its brown coal, and the Ice Age that laid moraines, leveled plains, and created the fertile floodplains and Auenwald; he pairs geology with an advocate’s eye for the plain’s quiet beauty and notes modern scars from open-cast mining. Professor Naumann then portrays the Auwald west of Leipzig as a classic floodplain forest shaped by periodic inundation, detailing its tree mix (oak, ash, elm, hornbeam; willows and alders), undergrowth and rich spring flora, hydrology, and root ecology (including mycorrhiza), while highlighting protected zones like the Polenz at the Hundewasser and Luppe landscapes and warning against invasive plantings. Finally, Karl Berger defines “Leipziger Land,” voices concern over industrialization, suburban sprawl, and brown-coal works, and begins a walking sketch across the windswept fields north and west of the city (Rackwitz, Petersberg, the solitary Buschnaukirche), before the excerpt breaks off mid-journey. (This is an automatically generated summary.)