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The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew are normally simply referred to as Kew Gardens. Located in southwest London, these spectacular botanical gardens on 300 acres add to their accomplishment as a major visitor attraction the fact that they are a renowned plant science, research, and conservation facility contributing to today's environmental changes.
Kew Gardens preserve and care for a wide collection of plants and specimens that are presented to the delight of approximately two million visitors a year who flock to the gardens to enjoy the exhibits or just the beautiful landscape gardens.
The gardens were created in 1759 by Lord Capel and went through many changes and additions over the years. In 1840 Kew Gardens became a national botanical garden, in 2003 it was put on UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites, and in 2009 they celebrated their 250th anniversary. They employ more than 650 scientists and other staff and have two "out stations" at Wakehurst Place in Sussex and Bedgebury Pinetum in Kent.
For instance, Kew Gardens Millennium Seed Bank is the world's largest wild plant seed bank. It collects and conserves seed from 10% of the world's 30,000 species of wild flowering plants, with a goal to conserve 25% by the year 2020.
Kew Gardens Herbarium is one of the world's largest and contains approximately 7 million specimens in over 350,000 different types of specimens
The Temperate House is the largest glasshouse in the world and holds the world's tallest indoor plant. Commissioned in 1859 by then Kew Director Sir William Hooker , Decimus Burton began the collection of numerous plant species from around the world. Taking 38 years to build up the collection and constructing the Temperate House, the worlds largest Victorian glass structure was officially opened in 1863 yet unfinished until 4 decades later.
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The Palm House is a tropical rain forest inside a structure of wrought iron with its panes of glass hand-blown. There is a rose garden behind the Palm House that replicates the original rose garden from 1848. Other gardens include ones with azaleas, lilacs, magnolias, bamboo, and juniper.
Designed by Decimus Burton, Palm House was constructed between 1844 and 1848, engineered by Richard Turner this Victorian and glass structure is made up of 700 panes of glass and wrought iron. Read more......
The Princess of Wales Conservatory has ten computer-controlled climate zones for the Dry Tropics and Wet Tropics plants. It also contains a fascinating orchid collection. Named after Princess Augusta the founder of Kew the conservatory was dedicated by Princess Diana of Wales in 1987.
Originally designed in 1982 to replace 26 smaller exhibits, the Princess of Wales Conservatory is divided into 2 main climate zones, wet tropics and dry tropics. Read More.....
 The Evolution House was presented to Kew Gardens from the Australian Government in 1949, the Evolution House is located at the rear of the Temperate House. Unlike the Palm House and Temperate House, the structure was prefabricated using aluminum alloy to resist rust such as that plaques the other two Victorian structures. Read more....
 What is a Minka House? For centuries a popular Japanese Farm House was made from study wood beams, mud filled wall panels with a thatched roof that would last for well over a hundred years. The Japanese Minka House was designed to be movable, not only in relocating to a different location but also earthquake resistant. The house was not tied or cemented in place but was built above a bed of stones, thus making it flexible in times of earthquakes. Read More........
 The Pagoda standing 10 stories reaches almost 163 feet into the Kew Gardens landscape was designed by Sir William Chambers and installed in the Gardens in 1762 as a surprise to Princess Agusta. At the time, the Pagoda was the largest and most accurate Chinese structure to be recreated in all of Europe. Read More.....
 The Orangery, at one time England's largest glasshouse was constructed at Kew Gardens in 1761 by Sir William Chambers. Originally designed in the hopes of growing oranges, The Orangery was built 92 feet long and 33 feet wide with glass doors along the north and south walls. Even though the house was designed for growing oranges and other citrus trees it was not long before it became apparent that not enough light entered the building for growing citrus. Read More.....
Just to the north of the rock garden lies a unusually looking glass building, Davies Alpine House, modern an futuristic in construction, the Alpine House is home to species that are found in the upper reaches of the Alpine Bimess, usually 10,000 feet or higher.
Davies Alpine House is fourth generation of Alpine Houses at Kew Gardens, the first being constucted in 1887, then replaced in 1939 with the second generation, a third generation of Alpine House was built in 1981. Today's Alpine house was built in 2006, Read More.....
 Kew Gardens oldest glasshouse is The Nash Conservatory, originally located at Buckingham Palace and known as the Architectural Conservatory, this Greek Temple design was one of 2 stone buildings designed by John Nash for the gardens of Buckingham Palace.
Built in 1825, The Nash Conservatory was designed in classical stone, it is said that the 12 columns that make up the west and east walls came from the Carlton House, an London Mansion built back in 1783.
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 On the eastern side of Palm House Pond lies the Museum Number 1, home to over 83,000 specimens, Kew Gardens botany collection is displayed in this museum under the name “Plants and People”.
Originally inspired by King George IV in 1820 that Kew Gardens should have a museum on the interaction of plants and people, it was not till Gardens director Sir William Jackson Hooker in 1846 took his own personal collection of textiles, dyes timbers and gum and placed them in rooms given to the servants Read More.....
In the Northwest corner of Kew gardens lays The Lake, 5 acres of water with 4 heavily wooded islands dotting the center of The Lake that provides a secluded sanctuary and conservation area for the Kew’s wildlife.
Over the years there has been two lakes located in the gardens, today’s present day lake and the first built or dug during the 1740’s till the 1760’s. Originally started by Fredrick, Prince of Whales Read More....
Free tours are conducted by guides at 11 am and 2 pm every day except Christmas. You can also walk on the treetop walkway that was opened in May of 2008. It is 59 feet high and 660 feet long, takes visitors into a woodland glade's tree canopy, and sways in the wind. You can reach this walkway by stairs or using a lift. There is also a 72-seater road train that takes a route around the gardens where you can receive a commentary and make several stops.
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