Tropical Extravaganza 2010 - Waterlily House Display
Discover unusual and vulnerable plants.
Enter the heat of the Waterlily House at Kew Gardens and be prepared to be bowled over by a riot of colour. The hottest glasshouse at Kew will be transformed, highlighting some of the world’s most exciting biodiversity hotspots.
The usual waterlilies have been replaced with a stunning pond display of Cymbidium orchids which have been kindly supplied by McBeans’s Orchids – the country’s leading specialist orchid cultivator.
The word 'biodiversity' describes the huge variety of life on Earth. Wild plants have amazing colours and patterns, and deliberately breeding them creates showy cultivated varieties like the orchids in the pond display.
Learn how Kew’s earliest plant collectors had to risk disease, robbery, hurricanes and even being taken prisoner. If plants eventually reached the ships, they still had to survive months of sea-salt, extreme weather, rats, cats and dogs.
Don't miss London's most colourful festival
Creating Kew's Tropical Extravaganza 2010
Kew on YouTube
- See our most popular video - First known instance of a cricket as an orchid pollinator
- View more exclusive videos from Kew
See your photos on our website
- Share your photos with Kew on Flickr and we'll feature the best on our website.
Kew is celebrating the role of plants as part of the International Year of Biodiversity in 2010.
- Print friendly
- Send to a friend
-
Send to a friend Close
- Spread the word
-
Spread the word Close
- Blog this
- Donate
Follow Kew
Keep up to date with events and news from Kew
