Lindley and Hooker, local heroes of the botanic world

Let’s Talk gardening expert Charlotte Philcox looks back at the lives of two famous botanists of the 19th Century who were both local to our region.

- Charlotte Philcox

HERE IN EAST ANGLIA, we can be proud of our traditions of horticulture, and the fact that two of the most famous botanists of the 19th Century, John Lindley and Joseph Hooker, were born in the region.

Both went on to have strong links with Kew Gardens. Yet while many of us have enjoyed a visit to see Kew’s amazing plant collections, few might recognise that one of the original aims of the gardens was to provide a resource which would help the British Empire in developing new colonies across the world.

John Lindley (1799-1865), was born at Catton, in Norfolk. His father George, a nurseryman, was respected as a supplier of apple trees.

Educated at Norwich School, in 1819 John began working for the famous botanist Sir Joseph Banks, who advised King George III on the development of Kew Gardens. As someone with colossal dedication to his subject, Lindley was also to become highly respected, lecturing and writing on botany, producing botanical illustrations and developing a collection of rare orchids.

Lindley’s achievements were almost too many to list, but included his appointment as secretary of the Horticultural Society of London, which was later to become the Royal Horticultural Society.

There, he initiated the flower shows which led to the establishment of the Chelsea Flower Show. In 1829, he became the first Professor of Botany at London University where, unhappy with the lack of suitable textbooks, he wrote new ones for his students.