Kew Gardens, Botanical garden in Richmond upon Thames, England
Kew Gardens is a botanical garden in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames covering roughly 326 acres with collections from temperate, tropical and alpine zones. The layout includes glasshouses such as the Palm House and Waterlily House, open lawns, a Japanese garden, alpine sections and a treetop walkway that runs between the canopy.
The royal gardens took shape during the 18th century when King George III merged two neighboring estates and opened the grounds for botanical research. During the 19th century the site expanded under state oversight and gained glasshouses that still define its appearance today.
The name Kew comes from the old village that once marked a landing point on the Thames. Today you see visitors resting on the lawns, walking through glasshouses or watching the Japanese maples in autumn, while people use the pathways year-round to explore different plant collections and pause at benches overlooking planted borders.
Access is through Richmond or Kew Gardens stations, with different entrance gates depending on your destination within the grounds. Paths are mostly paved, though some sections such as alpine gardens or individual ponds lie on uneven ground.
An underground laboratory on the grounds stores seeds of wild plant species from around the world at sub-zero temperatures to protect them from extinction. This collection works with projects on several continents and exchanges material with research centers regularly.
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