Interesting plants at Kew

Titan arum timeline

The titan arum is a giant among plants, with a massive flowering structure that rises some three metres above the ground. Its flowering is rare and unpredictable, and always grabs the headlines!

Coffee (Coffea arabica) growing in Cameroon

Coffee is one of the world’s favourite drinks, one of the most important commercial crop-plants, and the second most valuable international commodity. Around 100 million people worldwide depend on coffee for their livelihoods.

Nymphaea thermarum flower

Nymphaea thermarum is the smallest waterlily in the world, and the only Nymphaea to grow in damp mud rather than water.

Nymphaea thermarum in cultivation at Kew

Nymphaea thermarum is the smallest waterlily in the world, and the only Nymphaea to grow in damp mud rather than water.

Balloon pea in South Africa

Balloon pea is a South African herbal remedy traditionally used for stomach problems, diabetes and lately as an important tonic to improve the overall health of cancer and HIV/AIDS patients.

Flowers of Camellia sinensis, commonly known as

Tea is the most important non-alcoholic beverage in the world, and over three million tonnes are grown annually.

Tahina spectabilis to scale

Large enough to be visible in satellite imagery, dimaka is an enormous ‘self-destructive’ palm that remained undetected by science until 2007. Image: John Dransfield

Dimaka (Tahina spectabilis)

Large enough to be visible in satellite imagery, dimaka is an enormous ‘self-destructive’ palm that remained undetected by science until 2007.

Bee orchid (Ophrys apifera)

The striking flowers of the bee orchid resemble a bee, resting on a pink flower.

Ethiopian banana plant (Ensete ventricosum

Image: Forest & Kim Starr

Encephalartos altensteinii in the Palm House at Kew

Our specimen of Encephalartos altensteinii was collected for the botanic garden in 1773 by Kew’s first plant hunter, Francis Masson. It is thought to be the oldest pot plant in the world.

Wollemi pine outside the Orangery

The Wollemi pine was known only from fossils until 1994 when it was found growing in a rainforest gorge in Australia.