It was 100 years ago that William Dallimore took the “bold” decision to relocate Kew’s collection of mature conifer trees out of London.
He had noticed that the increasing industrial pollution in the city had a detrimental impact on the growth of the trees.
They were relocated to what is today known as Bedgebury National Pinetum and Forest in Kent.
It’s now home to a world-leading collection of conifers containing nearly 12,000 specimen trees.
89 of the 315 trees which were planted in 1925 from Kew remain at Bedgebury.
The Power of Trees exhibition in Kew’s Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art opens tomorrow.
