Lani's Internship Summary:
For my internship, I worked at The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in London, England. Kew is a public organization dedicated to the conservation of wild plant and fungi species with research aimed at understanding the variety of plants and fungi worldwide.

This knowledge is used to advance species identification, habitat assessment methodology, and underpins research on sustainable agricultural practices, climate change and biodiversity. My internship was to maintain plants in the south wing of the Palm House and the Waterlily House at Kew Gardens and to design a plant scheme for the Waterlily House entrance which preserves the Victorian style that drapes the Kew landscape, showcases plant diversity, and is suitable to the areaí¢â‚¬â„¢s climate factors. Through this project, I learned how to apply ecological design to a planting display, gained skills in project management, and furthered my knowledge in tropical botany.

Overview of Work
My role and individual work within the Palm House section was to help with the maintenance and planting of moist tropical species. Our objectives were to create conditions similar to the tropical forest for which rare, threatened species and species of economic significance can be displayed for education and research.

For the ten weeks I maintained plants in the South Wing which is designated as the section for African plants. This section included extremely rare plants such as the triangle palm, Dypsis decaryi, and the bottle palm, Hyophorbe lagenicaulis. My section also included valuable species such as coffee bushes, and the Madagascar periwinkle, Catharanthus roseus from which anti-leukaemia drugs were developed. There was also a Coco-de-mer, Lodoicea maldivica, a tree that has the worldí¢â‚¬â„¢s largest seed.

On a daily basis I was responsible for watering, fertilizing and pruning the plants in the south wing. Occasionally plants were removed or installed based on their health and condition within the Palm House. It was also my duty to keep pests under control. Environmentally sound methods were used to maintain the plant and soil ecology. I also had the opportunity to practice plant propagation methods such as vegetative cuttings, air layering, division, and grafting.

For my intern project, I designed, implemented and maintained a planting display for the entrance to the Waterlily House. Design options were created for the Palm House manager and Glasshouses manager for idea generation and review. After modifications were made to the design and approved, I chose the plant types from the nursery and submitted a plant list including details of the plant names and quantities for the order.

During the construction phase, I managed a team of three Kew student staff members to help prepare the soil for plant establishment and to propagate plants for the display. All plants were installed according to my design layout and watered using a drip irrigation system. As the plants matured and filled in, the display proved to be a success among Kew staff and visitors.

Professional and Personal Development
Through my internship at Kew, I gained valuable skills and knowledge that will be useful in my future career. Hands on experience with the maintenance of plants in the Palm House have heightened my awareness to the diversity of plant life and their need for proper care. Professionally, I have gained skills in plant propagation methods, glasshouse and outdoor plant maintenance, and small scale project management all of which will be useful as a landscape architect. My planting design project taught me to work with and manage a team from design phase to construction and maintenance phases. Personally, my experience at Kew has opened and widened my understanding of landscape architecture. I learned that the inclusion of horticulture into landscape design can encourage community development. This goal can be reached by teaching people the significance of their natural resources through meaningful plant selection and its aesthetic presentation.

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Internship Details