Product Description

The authorised history of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #986580 in Books
• Published on: 2007-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 480 pages

From Library Journal
Ghillean T. Prance, the director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, states in his foreword, "Nobody learns more about the institution where they work than the librarian." Desmond, formerly chief librarian and archivist at Kew, proves this point with his definitive history of Britain's most famous gardens. The early chapters offer a history of the buildings in the garden and of the royal involvement in the architecture and landscaping of their properties at Kew. Every fact about the early years seems to have been ferreted out, and extensive quotations are taken from archival material. The years when the gardens were the repository of Britain's plant-collecting expeditions take the story around the world, and Desmond explains in detail how those breadfruit trees on the Bounty were tended before the mutiny. We are brought to the present with information about the research activities supporting contemporary Kew's primary objective of increasing knowledge and understanding of the plant kingdom. Fifteen appendixes cover topics ranging from boundary walls, trees, and the water supply to a detailed chronology and brief biographies of persons related to Kew's history. This detailed and engrossing history is recommended for research collections.
Daniel Starr, Museum of Modern Art Lib., New York
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ann Geneva, Financial Times
It is impossible to do justice to the comprehensiveness of both the text and copious illustrations of this superbly researched and beautifully produced book.

Allen Paterson, Country Life
This is an important book, impeccably researched, superbly written, illustrated and produced.