Beyond Bananas: Chatsworth's Botanical Treasures

Join our archives and library team for an extra special morning in the Chatsworth Garden and study room.

Dive into the letters exchanged by the 6th Duke's head gardener Joseph Paxton and plant hunters sourcing specimens worldwide, or explore 18th-century account books detailing work on the historic Cascade.

You will have the opportunity to get up close with archival botanical specimens from Chatsworth's 19th-century garden and materials on the Great Conservatory, read diaries and letters describing the garden's features and explore contemporary recipes from James White, an 1830s Chatsworth gardener.

After viewing historic archival garden plans and beautifully illustrated botanical books in the Collections Study Room, you will enjoy a special tour of the garden’s glasshouses with our Garden Plant Collection and Learning Manager. Expect to see plants in the glasshouse from our historic plant collection, including giant water lilies, night flowering cacti and famous Cavendish banana plant.

Event details

Wednesday 8 May | 11am to 1pm

£45 per person