Ahead of its upcoming three-year restoration project, London's famous Barbican Conservatory is getting ready to give away thousands of plants from its collection. The renowned space is the city's second-biggest conservatory (after the Princess of Wales glasshouse at The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew), and has housed more than 800 species of plants, including bananas, palms and cacti.
Visitors will be able to take home species including giant-leafed monstera, glossy ficus and purple-and-green tradescantia, all of which will be propagated and shared by Wayward Plants – the organisation responsible for redistributing the plants, trees and materials from RHS flower shows, including Chelsea.
“Together with the Barbican’s horticultural team, we are propagating thousands of cuttings from this extraordinary collection, creating a living legacy for the Conservatory while giving people across London the opportunity to care for a small piece of it in their own homes," said Heather Ring, Wayward Plants' co-founder and director.
From 2027, the conservatory, which opened in 1984, will see major works to repair its aging infrastructure, introduce sustainable systems and re-landscape the interior to provide better growing conditions. While just 30% of the conservatory is currently fully accessible, the works will introduce step-free access throughout, widened paths and a new lift.
Read more:
- Everything to know about the Barbican's major restoration
- This secret garden of London’s Brutalist icon is open to all
From 2030, the eco-Brutalist space will be open daily free of charge, rather than a few times a month.
Behind the scheme are the multi-award-winning landscape designers Harris Bugg Studio, who will revitalise the planting alongside Allies & Morrison, Asif Khan Studio and environmental engineers Buro Happold. These changes are part of phase one of the Barbican Renewal Programme; which aims to safeguard the much-loved site for the future.
To prepare for the project, the conservatory must be emptied, ready for the re-waterproofing works.
“I’ve worked in the Conservatory for sixteen years and nurtured many of these plants from seedlings," said Marta Lowcewicz, the Barbican's head gardener, "so it means a lot to me and my team that so many will go on living in people’s homes."
“It hasn’t always been easy managing a space that wasn’t really designed around the needs of plants. That’s why I’m excited for what comes next – creating the best possible environment for the collection to thrive while opening it up for more people to enjoy.”
The plant adoption event
The first plant adoption event is happening on Wednesday 19th August 12pm-5pm. Free tickets have already sold out, but there will be further events on 13th September and 2nd December, so it's worth keeping an eye on the Barbican website and social media pages for news updates.
There will also be an event on 29th November for Young Barbican members to adopt a plant. At each event, visitors will be able to explore the conservatory and find out more about the exciting renovation plans.
