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The Nash Conservatory

Nash Conservatory when at Buckingham Palace

The Nash Conservatory (circled) at Buckingham Palace, before it was transferred to Kew in 1836.

 

John Nash designed four conservatories for Buckingham Palace in 1825. Under William IV, the decision was taken to move one of these to Kew in 1836 during remodelling of the Palace by architect Edward Blore, Nash’s replacement.

Eighty feet long, forty feet wide and twenty-six feet high, the Nash Conservatory was re-erected at Kew at a cost of £3,498 on a site chosen by William IV. The conservatory was then modified by Sir Jeffrey Wyatville, and a heating system of hot-water pipes designed by A.M.Perkins installed.

 Early illustration of Nash Conservatory at Kew

The Nash Conservatory first housed palms, but after the construction of the Palm House in 1848 it became home to Australian flora, such as the Eucalyptus and the Monkey Puzzle Tree. In 1862 these were removed to the newly-built central range of the Temperate House and replaced by tropical climbers, mainly from South America and South East Asia, and it then became popularly known as the ‘Aroid House’.

Engraving of Nash Conservatory at Kew

It was ultimately closed after providing temporary shelter for plants removed during the restoration of the Palm House in the 1980s. By this time the temperatures required to sustain the plants had damaged the fabric of the building, necessitating its renovation.

The restored conservatory is used as a new educational resource for some of the 60,000 school children who visit Kew each year.

 
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