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Science has always been at the heart of Kew. Our research, partnerships and collections contribute to some of the most important issues facing our planet.

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State of the World's Fungi report

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew has released the first ever State of the World’s Fungi report. The report outlines the state of the world’s fungi and highlights just how important fungi are to all life on Earth. It explores the current knowledge on the diversity, distribution and evolutionary relationships of the world’s fungi, examines positive interactions and insights incorporating the key uses of fungi in everyday life, and looks at the global challenges associated with fungi, including climate change and plant diseases. Explore the data and download the report from stateoftheworldsfungi.org.

Seed collecting in Namibia

Who we are and what we do

Kew is a global resource for plant and fungal knowledge. Our unique combination of extensive collections, databases, scientific expertise and global partnerships gives us a leading role in facilitating access to fundamental plant and fungal information.
Fungarium specimens

Kew's Science Collections

With over 8.5 million items, Kew houses the largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world. They represent approximately 95% of vascular plant genera and 60% of fungal genera.
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Projects

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Collecting Aloe dichotoma seeds (Credit: Wolfgang Stuppy)

Training and education

Find out more about Kew's MSc course, PhD opportunities, training courses and internships.
Plant and Fungal Tree of Life

Data and resources

Explore Kew's data and resources for plant and fungal information.
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Kew Science blog

Explore some of the results and activities of our global science and conservation research program, and keep up to date with current developments in Kew science and science policy.

Kew Science news

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23rd November 2018

New orchid species pictured on bank card

Kew scientists have a described a new orchid species which has been featured on an Indonesian bank card.
Author cs53kg
15th November 2018

Kew continues to contribute to the IUCN Red List

Over 96,000 species have now been assessed for their conservation status with the latest update to the IUCN Red List.
Author Anonymous (not verified)

Kew Science blog

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27th November 2018

Kew's 2017-18 Sandwich Students Report back

Each year Kew’s Science Directorate hosts a number of twelve-month sandwich internships across its six research departments which contribute to a diverse range of projects. Two of the 2017-18 interns report back on their experiences over the past year
Author
Kew Science
20th November 2018

Fungus in Parliament: transcribing a slice of history

Volunteer transcriber Ben Hirschler finds some fascinating historical nuggets buried among the dried mushrooms in Kew’s Fungarium, the largest collection of fungal specimens in the world.
Author
Kew Science

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