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Kew Gardens
back to sights listingThese gardens, dating from the at least the 18th century, spread over 300 acres on the south bank of the River Thames. They were originally a pleasure garden, and then became a scientific centre and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew are still a globally important scientific research centre, growing more species than any other garden in the world and has a long and distinguished royal history. There are now a staggering 50,000-odd species of plant grown here.
Kew Gardens consist of two enormous greenhouses. The Palm House was built in 1844-8, by the engineer Richard Turner and the great architect Decimus Burton. It is a huge and beautiful iron and glass structure made of simple repeating units. Looking at this elegant structure must be about as close as we can get to seeing the Great Exhibition (Crystal Palace) building, which no longer exists. Even bigger than the Palm House is the later Temperate House, again by Decimus Burton, which was commenced in 1860 but apparently not finished until 1899. This structure is some 600 ft long and 60 ft high, and with its more blocky structure (whereas the Palm House is arched and curved) and classical-style pediment is perhaps even more evocative of the Crystal Palace.
The gardens first passed into the grounds of royalty in the 1840s and they have long been a popular tourist attraction. In fact today the London district of Kew has become synonymous with these gardens. If you're a stickler for accuracy you might like to note that the proper way to refer to Kew is in the plural, i.e. Kew Gardens, not Kew Garden. This is due to the fact that centuries ago there were two estates here, Kew Estate and Richmond Estate. These estates were combined to form the Royal Botanic Gardens. The gardens are "Royal" because for many years the estates that now form the gardens were owned by members of Britain's royal family. King George II and Queen Caroline lived at Ormonde Lodge, on the Richmond estate. Their son and heir, Prince Frederick, leased the neighbouring Kew estate in the 1730s. In 1841 the first official director of the Botanical Gardens was named, so that year is generally regarded as the foundation of the Royal Botanic Gardens. Sir William Hooker was the man charged with running the gardens, and he was responsible for founding the Museum, the Department of Economic Botany, the Library, and the Herbarium.
Experience the magnificent glasshouses displaying a wide range of plants from the rainforest to the desert. Wander through Kew and discover inspiration at every corner.
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Address:
Richmond,
Surrey,
TW9 3AB.
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