OUGD603 - Brief 6 - Research Brief - Indoor Gardening - Research - The Wardian Case : a history of plant transportation by Phillipa Lewis (Kew Gardens)

The Wardian Case : a history of plant transportation by Phillipa Lewis (Kew Gardens)

- from the 18th century plant specimens were sent to Kew from across the world and as far as New Zealand, Malaysia and Uganda
- Henry Ridley the Scientific Director of the Singapore Botanic Gardens sent seeds from expeditions in Malaysia
- 'up until the early 19th century, plants being sent back to England would often die on long sea voyages, from exposure to salt water and lack of light and fresh water'
- Nathanial Bagshaw Ward created the Wardian Case 
- was a doctor but interested in botany 
- 1829 - he discovered a fern growing in a glass case, which had a cocoon of moths in
- he experimented and published his findings in 'One the Growth of Plants in Closely Glazed Cases' 1842
- the glass cases could be left on deck so the plants would get sunlight 
- they protected them from salt water and the plants would benefit from condensed water 
- crossed battens were added to fix the plants in place during the journey 
- ventilation holes were added covered in perforated zinc to keep rodents out 

- standard cases held 28 plants 
- the cases made 'it possible to transplant commercially significant plants from their native habitats and introduce them to cultivation for new countries and new markets'
- 1962 - last Wardian case arrived from Fiji 
- became an expensive way of transporting plants and only used for plants that couldn't be sent by air 
- 'the legacy of the Wardian case and the global transfer of plants it allowed can still be seen in the plants growing at Kew and across the world today' 




https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/the-wardian-case-a-history-of-plant-transportation