Joseph Dalton Hooker

Kew’s empire-building director, Himalayan plant hunter, and the confidant Darwin trusted first.

Core Principles & Analysis

• His Himalayan expeditions introduced dozens of rhododendron species to Western gardens.
• Darwin confessed his species theory to Hooker in 1844, "like confessing a murder".
• He directed Kew for twenty years, making it the clearinghouse of imperial botany.

Specifications & Metrics

• ERA: 1817 – 1911