It may come as a surprise to many that some of the most iconic private Italian renaissance gardens were free and public spaces right from the outset, and this access was guaranteed by the concept of the Lex hortorum or the law of gardens.

First recorded in 1869 on the tiny Lord Howe Island in the Pacific the Kentia palm soon made its way into fashionable Victorian parlours, drawing rooms and ballrooms.

The Empress Josephine has often been portrayed as a needy socialite so it may come as a surprise to many that Josephine was a very accomplished plantswoman, gardener and keen botanist

In the days before refrigeration, icehouses were designed to store ice in bulk for summertime use.

In the 18th century, any landscape of note was not complete without a collection of garden buildings and other eclectic features

Claude Monet's garden at Giverny was created as a work of art in itself and became the subject of many others

An early Nurseryman noted for the first deliberate hybridisation and the promotion of exotic imported plants.

Elvaston Garden,the pursuit of Love.

Derby Arboretum, a pioneering public park.

Mrs Eleanor Coade, Artist and Industrialist