The Story of Kew Gardens in Photographs

The earliest surviving image of the Palm House, late 19th century

Interior of Palm House, late 19th century

Visitors enjoy the Waterlily Pond, 1900

Miss Cotton, daughter of Kew's Herbarium Keeper Arthur Cotton, sitting on a Victoria amazonica waterlily, 1923

Joseph Hooker and wife Hyacinth, only known image of Hooker in the Gardens, 1895

Joseph Hooker on a plant hunting expedition in the US, Colorado, 1877

Marianne North, portrait by Julia Margaret Cameron

The first female gardeners were employed at Kew in 1896. They were encouraged to wear men's clothing to avoid distracting their male colleagues

Wardian cases revolutionized botany in the 19th century, allowing live plants to be transported globally

Queen Elizabeth II on a royal visit to celebrate Kew's bicentenary, 1959