Historic Document Could Save Kew Herbarium

Original bequest stipulates that collection must not be moved

Kew Herbarium. Picture: Michael Dibb

November 23, 2023

Campaigners hoping to thwart plans to move the collection of the Kew Herbarium to Reading have received a boost following the discovery of a document in Kew Archives.

The current management of the Royal Botanic Gardens had announced plans to relocate the plant library to Thames Valley Science Park which it says has facilities more suitable for studying the collection.

According to a report in the Daily Telegraph, the original bequest to the Royal Botanic Gardens made by Sir William Hooker states that the collection must remain at Kew Gardens.

The discovery was made by Isobel Moses who is a direct descendant of Sir William. The botanist was the first ever director of the gardens who built the Palm House and opened up more of the site to the public. He donated his own collection to the Herbarium which now holds more than seven million specimens dating back to the 17th century. It includes 90% of the world’s plant diversity with 30,000 samples added every year and includes a Galapagos fern collected by Charles Darwin and plants from the East India Company from the beginning of the tea trade.

The intention of the bequest is confirmed in a letter to the government from Sir William’s son, Sir Joseph Hooker, who was a friend of Charles Darwin as well as also being a director at Kew. In the letter he states that his father’s last wishes were that the collection should remain there ‘in perpetuity’.

The Telegraph quotes legal experts as saying that these documents “go a long way towards being a contract between his executors and the government”.

Mrs Moses said, “The proposed move makes no sense whatsoever, and would remove a key part of Kew from the rest of its activities, at a time of increasing concern about the dire effects of global warming.”

However existing staff, 84% of whom oppose the move, say that the collection will be damaged and result in overseas donors taking back species they have given to the collection. Employees at Kew claim that the collection needs to be close to the live species to enable proper study.

A spokesman for Royal Botanic Gardens said, “Our plans for a modern, purpose-built and state-of-the-art facility for our world-leading collection will not only maintain Britain’s historic position in botanical research and innovation but will also ensure the secrets of these specimens can be unlocked in the future, leading to potential discoveries for repairing our fragile planet.”