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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsThe eight plants in this guide come from a specific place and moment: Kensington Palace’s 2019 Victorian planting scheme, created for the Sunken Garden and East Front to mark 200 years since Queen Victoria’s birth. They include trees, a palm, climbers and an agave, each with a distinct story of discovery and introduction. The list describes that scheme—not a permanent inventory of every royal garden or a guarantee that all eight are visible on any given visit.
What plants are in royal palace gardens?
Royal gardens are not one unified planting collection. Kensington Palace’s eight Victorian-era examples sit alongside Hampton Court’s specialist collections and historic plantings, Kew Palace’s period-inspired Queen’s Garden, and Versailles’s formal gardens and Orangery. The eight plants below are the species and varieties Historic Royal Palaces documented for Kensington’s 2019 scheme. The source says they were discovered during the Victorian era; that does not mean they are all native to Britain. Historic Royal Palaces’ account of the Kensington planting scheme gives the introduction histories.
The eight plants in Kensington Palace’s Victorian scheme
1. Chilean lantern tree (Crinodendron hookerianum)
Plant hunter William Lobb introduced the Chilean lantern tree to Britain in 1848 after collecting it in Chile. Its common name reflects the lantern-like flowers that make this evergreen tree a distinctive ornamental.
2. Chilean myrtle (Luma apiculata)
Native to the central Andes in Chile and Argentina, Chilean myrtle was introduced to Europe by Lobb in 1844. It is a tree rather than a myrtle native to Britain, despite its familiar common name.
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3. Tropaeolum speciosum
This scrambling creeper is native to Chile. Historic Royal Palaces says Lobb brought it to England for Queen Victoria in 1845. Its trailing habit sets it apart from the trees and palms on the list.
4. Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica)
The standard botanical spelling is Cryptomeria japonica. The palace source describes the tree as native to Japan and China, and says Robert Fortune collected seed and plants in China before bringing them to England around 1843.
5. Chinese or Japanese dogwood (Cornus kousa)
This small deciduous tree first reached Boston late in the 19th century, according to the palace account. Ernest Wilson is credited with introducing it to Great Britain.
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6. Chinese windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei)
Historic Royal Palaces describes this as a hardy evergreen palm with a native range spanning China, India and Japan. Philipp Franz von Siebold brought it from Japan to Europe in 1830. Later, in 1849, Robert Fortune brought plants from China to Kew and gave them to Prince Albert.
7. Queen Victoria agave (Agave victoriae-reginae)
The palace source recounts that Victor Considerant’s first European import from Mexico arrived in 1872 but died after being overwatered. A later import of 12 plants arrived in 1874, and the source says the plant was proposed to be named for Victoria. The agave’s inclusion connects the scheme’s plant history directly to its commemorative purpose.
8. Star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides)
Star jasmine is a climbing plant that Robert Fortune first introduced after finding it in southern China, according to Historic Royal Palaces. The source also records “Confederate Jasmine” as another common name.
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How other palace gardens differ
Beyond Kensington’s Victorian scheme, royal gardens preserve different periods and kinds of planting. These examples should not be confused with the eight-plant list: some are named collections, some are historically informed recreations, and others are landscape features or seasonal displays.
Hampton Court Palace: specialist collections and Tudor-inspired planting
Historic Royal Palaces documents National Plant Collections of Heliotropium and Lantana at Hampton Court, as well as Queen Mary II’s Exoticks, recognized as a Heritage Collection. The National Plant Collections page, accessed in 2026, lists 27 Heliotropium cultivars and two species, and 37 Lantana cultivars and one species. The Heliotropium collection was first designated a National Plant Collection in 2000 and is still used in summer bedding; the Lantana collection was recognized in 2008. Historic Royal Palaces’ National Plant Collections page provides those details.
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Hampton Court’s Great Fountain Garden was created by William III and Mary II, whose gardener Daniel Marot planted two radiating avenues of yews. South-facing walled compartments sheltered tender exotics. The palace reproduces English traveller Celia Fiennes’s 1691 description of “fine aloes, paricantha, myrtles, oranges and oliantas”—a historical visitor’s account, not a current plant inventory. Historic Royal Palaces’ Great Fountain Garden history gives the context.
For a different historical layer, Hampton Court’s Chapel Court is a Tudor-inspired garden whose selection draws on 16th-century herbs and flowers. Examples include white and red roses, white and purple irises, periwinkle, sweet william, gilly flower, mint, Madonna lily and violet. Broom or greenweed, woad and dyers’ mignonette represent dye plants. The selection was informed by William Turner’s 1551 herbal and Gerard’s 1597 herbal. The palace’s Tudor garden page describes the planting.
Kew Palace: a garden inspired by the 17th century
Kew’s Queen’s Garden is dedicated to plants and architectural styles of the 17th century; Kew says most of its plants are species grown in the 1600s or earlier. Its laburnum pergola flowers in May and June. Kew’s Queen’s Garden guide describes the garden and its seasonal feature.
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Versailles: formal gardens and an Orangery
Louis XIV began the Versailles estate project in 1661, and André Le Nôtre developed the gardens over more than 40 years. The 1684 Orangery houses nearly 1,500 orange trees, lemon trees, palms and other species. It offers a useful contrast with Kensington’s documented plant list: the Versailles source describes an Orangery collection and a formal, symmetrical French garden layout, not the same kind of commemorative planting scheme. The Palace of Versailles’ Orangery page describes the building and its plants.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Which plants can I grow from a royal garden?
The Kensington list includes trees, a palm, an agave and two climbing or scrambling plants, but the source documents a palace planting scheme rather than providing growing instructions or a recommendation for every climate. Before choosing one for a home garden, check the plant’s mature size, hardiness, light and moisture needs against your conditions, and confirm the correct species with a reputable nursery. A plant’s appearance in a royal garden does not by itself establish that it will thrive in a particular region or container.
For a visit, treat garden descriptions as records of a design or collection rather than a promise that every named plant will be in view year-round. Hampton Court explicitly gives the Exoticks’ June-to-September display season; the Kensington source documents the 2019 scheme but does not guarantee the present visibility of each plant.
Royal gardens preserve different plant histories
Kensington’s eight plants tell a Victorian-era story of botanical collecting and introduction. Hampton Court adds named plant collections, Tudor-inspired herbs and flowers, and Queen Mary II’s recreated Exoticks; Kew’s Queen’s Garden evokes an earlier period; Versailles pairs formal design with its Orangery. Reading each garden on its own terms makes the plant names—and the histories behind them—more meaningful.
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