20 December 2018

5 reasons you should spend more time outdoors in 2019

New year, new you? Kick start your new year and reap the benefits of the great outdoors in 2019.

By Ellen McHale

The Natural Area located on the edge of our Arboretum

Get some exercise

There's nothing like a good walk after the excess of Christmas. Get your heart rate up and soak up some winter sunshine amongst our trees and plants. 

Take a brisk stroll through our Arboretum, which is a scientific collection of over 14,000 trees and represents more than 2,000 specimens. Some trees are as old as the Gardens themselves and many cannot be found anywhere else in Britain. 

Riverside walk in the Arboretum
Riverside walk in the Arboretum, © RBG Kew

Learn something new

Walk off the Christmas chocolate and learn some cool facts at the same time. Our 'Introduction to the Gardens' tour runs daily, where you can find out about all the amazing plants in our living collection. Or find out more about a plant currently flourishing in the Gardens on our 'Meet the experts' tour. 

Feeling creative? Learn a new skill on one of our short courses and get a healthy dose of fresh air at the same time.

Get some space

We all like a bit of quiet time once in a while, particularly after lots of parties and gatherings. 

Take a walk on the wild side in our Natural Area. Wander through the trees on our raised woodland walk and immerse yourself in the wilderness. 

British trees, including oak, beech, holly and yew can found here, as well as a few rarities like the Plymouth pear (Pyrus cordata) and the Bristol mountain ash. 

Discover new plants from every corner of the globe

Get inspiration for your 2019 holidays and discover plants from around the world. 

Head to the Mediterranean Garden and be transported to sunny beaches and rolling hills amongst our olive trees, cork oaks and pine oaks. 

Get lost amongst our towering redwood trees which are native to California. Our Redwood Grove, planted in the 1860s, contains a mix of coastal redwood and giant redwood and was planted in the 1860s. One of our coastal redwoods is Kew's tallest trees, standing at 39.3 metres high. 

Or take a wander around our bamboo garden and see 1,200 bamboo species of bamboo from China, Japan, the Himalayas and Americas, making it one of the largest collections in the UK. 

Get lost in the wild at Wakehurst

Explore somewhere new this new year - visit our wild botanic garden in Sussex, and discover 500 acres of beautiful ornamental gardens, woodlands and a nature reserve. 

Wakehurst's trees are grouped according to the areas of the world in which they grow naturally, so you can pass through different landscapes as you wander beneath the branches. 

Journey all the way from the woodlands of Australia, thriving with eucalyptus and wollemi pines, to the landscape of the Eastern Himalayas with its semi-evergreen collection of rhododendrons, laurels and maples. 

Plan your visit and explore Wakehurst for yourself.

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