The Lindley Library in London is the largest horticultural library in the world. [1] It is within the headquarters of the Royal Horticultural Society.
The Lindley Library in London is the largest horticultural library in the world. [1] It is within the headquarters of the Royal Horticultural Society.
The main part of the library is based at 80 Vincent Square, London, within the headquarters of its custodian, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS); the site also includes Lindley Hall, one of the Royal Horticultural Halls. RHS members may borrow books from the London, Wisley and Harlow Carr collections. [2]
The Upper Reading Room is open to the public and holds the 20th-century material available for loans, along with gardening magazines from around the world. Visitors must register if they wish to use the Lower Reading Room which houses historical collections. [1]
In 1995, the RHS proposed to relocate the main collection from London to Wisley, but architect Rick Mather redesigned the accommodation to make better use of the basement. [3] His design was accepted and the project was carried out between 1997 and 2001. [4] [5] The Heritage Lottery Fund assisted the renovation with a grant, one condition of which was that the library should be opened up to public access. [2]
The library is based upon the book collection of English botanist John Lindley and has many rare books dating from 1514. [6] It also includes other media such as garden guidebooks, trade catalogues, postcards and press cuttings. As well as horticulture, the collection covers flora, birds and other related subjects. The London site also includes the RHS' collection of paintings and photographs. [2] In 2009, the Library started issuing a series of papers (Occasional Papers). [7]
The London collection suffered minor damage in a fire in July 2011. No valuable works were lost. [6]
The first librarian was W. T. Thiselton-Dyer (1871–1875), later Director at Kew, followed by W. B. Hemsley (1875–1878). Amongst other notable librarians was William Thomas Stearn (1933–1952), who succeeded H. R. Hutchinson. More recently were Peter Stageman (1957) and Dr Brent Elliott who was librarian (1982–2007), and subsequently the RHS historian. He initiated and edited the Occasional Papers. [8] [9]
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity.
John Lindley FRS was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist.
RHS Garden Wisley is a garden run by the Royal Horticultural Society in Wisley, Surrey, south of London. It is one of five gardens run by the society, the others being Harlow Carr, Hyde Hall, Rosemoor, and Bridgewater. Wisley is the second most visited paid entry garden in the United Kingdom after the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, with 1,232,772 visitors in 2019.
The Plant Review, published quarterly by the Royal Horticultural Society, is a 68-page magazine containing "fascinating in-depth articles for everyone who loves plants". Its authoritative articles are written by acknowledged experts on plant-related subjects, and include plant profiles, horticulture, botany and the development of garden plants, focusing on ornamental plants grown in temperate gardens. It also reflects the scientific work of the RHS, as well as research conducted by other horticultural and botanical institutions and individuals. First published in 1979 as The Plantsman, it was renamed The Plant Review from September 2019.
William Thomas Stearn was a British botanist. Born in Cambridge in 1911, he was largely self-educated and developed an early interest in books and natural history. His initial work experience was at a Cambridge bookshop, but he also had an occupation as an assistant in the university botany department. At the age of 29, he married Eldwyth Ruth Alford, who later became his collaborator.
The Victoria Medal of Honour (VMH) is awarded to British horticulturists resident in the United Kingdom whom the Royal Horticultural Society Council considers deserving of special honour by the Society.
RHS Garden Hyde Hall is a public display garden run by the Royal Horticultural Society in the English county of Essex. It is one of five public gardens run by the society, alongside Wisley in Surrey, Harlow Carr in North Yorkshire, Rosemoor in Devon, and Bridgewater in Greater Manchester.
John Reeves was an English naturalist. He developed a notable collection of Chinese drawings of animals and plants. Reeves commissioned local Chinese artists to create the drawings, which are among the first examples of Chinese art done in the western style of scientific botanical and zoological illustration. Reeves was the son of Reverend Jonathan Reeves of West Ham, Essex. Orphaned young, he was educated at Christ's Hospital and started working with a tea merchant. His knowledge of teas got him an appointment of inspector of tea in 1808. In 1812 he was sent to China in the employment of the British East India Company. He was responsible for the introduction of a number of garden plants to the West including Wisteria. Reeves was a correspondent of the Horticultural Society of London to which he sent specimens. He also corresponded with Sir Joseph Banks, regularly sending him specimens. Reeves also took an interest in Chinese astronomy and herbal medicine, collaborating on these with the missionary and sinologist Robert Morrison. Reeves' son John Russell Reeves joined the tea business in 1827 and also took an interest in natural history and like his father, he too was elected into the Linnean and Royal Societies. Reeves senior returned to live in Clapham in 1831. He had sent specimens of the caterpillar fungus to Britain.
The Garden is the monthly magazine of the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), circulated to all the society's members as a benefit of membership; it is also sold to the public.
RHS Garden Rosemoor is a public display garden run by the Royal Horticultural Society in north Devon, England.
Sir James John Trevor Lawrence, 2nd Baronet, was an English surgeon, horticulturalist, and art collector. He later became a Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for 17 years, retiring to become treasurer of St Bartholomew's Hospital where he founded the Lawrence Scholarship and contributed to the King Edward's Hospital Fund.
The Veitch Memorial Medal is an international prize issued annually by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS).
Lindley Hall in Elverton Street, Westminster, London is the older of the two Royal Horticultural Halls and is owned by RHS Enterprises Limited, which is part of the charity Royal Horticultural Society in central London. The other is Lawrence Hall, which is no longer owned by the RHS; both are close to Vincent Square.
George Fergusson Wilson was an English industrial chemist.
Lilian Snelling (1879–1972) was "probably the most important British botanical artist of the first half of the 20th century". She was the principal artist and lithographer to Curtis's Botanical Magazine between 1921 and 1952 and "was considered one of the greatest botanical artists of her time" – "her paintings were both detailed and accurate and immensely beautiful". She was appointed MBE in 1954 and was awarded the Victoria Medal in 1955. The standard author abbreviation Snelling is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.
Deborah Lambkin is an Irish botanical artist who has been the official Orchid artist for the Royal Horticultural Society.
Caroline Maria Applebee was an English artist, mostly in watercolour.
Frederick James Chittenden (1873–1950) was a British horticulturalist and first director of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Wisley Garden. He was the author of a number of books on horticulture.
Hugh Ronalds was an esteemed nurseryman and horticulturalist in Brentford, who published Pyrus Malus Brentfordiensis: or, a Concise Description of Selected Apples (1831). His plants were some of the first European species to be shipped to Australia when the British colony was founded.
Nellie Roberts was an English botanical and scientific illustrator.