In Southwest London situated between Richmond and Kew are the Royal Botanic Gardens. “Kew Gardens” as it is more commonly known is home to the world’s largest collection of living plants and is the leading centre for research and education. Open to the public, this world heritage site it is one of the most spectacular tourist attractions in the London area.

The Nash Conservatory is the oldest of the nineteenth century glasshouses at Kew designed by John Nash originally for the gardens at Buckingham Palace but it was moved to Kew in 1836 by King William IV It is a Greek temple design in classic stone with twelve Iconic columns on the east and west façade. The interior is formed of elegant cast ironwork and glazing. Very different from efficient energy heating systems, the conservatory was heated by an old patent system of steam circulating through small-bore pipes, which has since been replaced. This conservatory is available as a wedding venue and would be perfect.

The Palm House is the largest and most important existing Victorian conservatory and glasshouse. A frame of wrought iron arches supports glass panels, which at one time were tinted green with copper oxide to reduce the significant heating effect. Nineteen metres high, there is a walkway at nine metres high to allow visitors to look down on the treetops on the palm tress and exotics cultivated inside. For its tropical plants, the Palm House needed heat. Originally, the boilers were in the basement, heating water pipes under iron gratings on which the plants stood in great teak tubs, or in clay pots on benches. The smoke from the boilers was led away through pipes in a tunnel under the Palm House Pond to the elegant Italianate Campanile smoke stack 150 m (490 ft) away. The tunnel also housed a small railway which, transported coal to the Palm House boilers. This magnificent building is also a sought after wedding venue.

The Princess of Wales Conservatory opened by Diana, Princess of Wales on 28 July 1987, is the most complex of Kew’s public glasshouses. It commemorates Princess Augusta who married Frederick, Prince of Wales, in 1736 and who founded the Gardens. Ten different environments cover the whole range of conditions in the tropics, ranging from scorching arid desert to moist tropical rainforest, computer-controlled under one roof. The technology involved is highly advanced. Sensors on walls and in beds report exact environmental conditions to the computer, which commands heat to flow, ventilation to open, or mists to spray to increase humidity.

Kew is home to many conservatories and for inspiration; there would be no better place to visit. The legacy from the conservatories at Kew may be seen on many urban and suburban houses in miniature form!

Why this piece on Kew’s conservatories? Well, at Simply Air Conditioning we love fitting conservatory heating and air conditioning units, so why not write about some of the most famous conservatories in our area!