Alex Summers appointed as Curator of Living Collections at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew announces the appointment of Alex Summers to the role of Curator of Living Collections. Reporting into the new Director of Gardens, Raoul Curtis Machin, this role provides pivotal leadership in both the delivery of Kew’s Living Collections Strategy and the Landscape Succession Plan, as well as the leadership of horticultural teams at Kew Gardens.

As a graduate of the Kew Diploma of Horticulture, Alex’s appointment marks his return to Kew Gardens. Prior to this, he completed the Cambridge University Botanic Garden (CUBG) traineeship and read a degree in Zoology at Durham University. Following his time at RBG Kew, Alex undertook the 12-month RHS/GCA Interchange Scholarship at Longwood Gardens in the USA. He has a background managing and curating living collections at CUBG and the National Botanic Garden of Wales, and of looking after high-quality heritage landscapes within the National Trust. He has an MPhil in taxonomy from Cambridge University completing a molecular and morphological revision of the family Neuradaceae, and his botanical and horticultural interests have taken him to diverse environments including the rainforests and mountains of Borneo and Vietnam, as well as the deserts of California and South Africa.

On his appointment, Alex Summers says, “It’s a tremendous honour to return to Kew Gardens, where I spent the early stages of my horticultural career. As Curator of Living Collections, I’m excited to help shape the future of one of the world’s most iconic gardens, which is not only home to a beautiful collection of living plants but also offers vital tools in our response to the biodiversity and climate crises. I look forward to working with Kew’s exceptional teams to champion plant conservation, advance horticultural science, and ensure its landscapes and plant collections thrive for generations to come.”

Richard Deverell, Director of RBG Kew says, “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome Alex back to Kew. His depth of horticultural expertise, coupled with a real passion for plant conservation, make him an outstanding choice to lead our Living Collections. As a Kew alumnus, Alex already understands and embodies the values that underpin our work here. I’m very much looking forward to the impact of his leadership—not only in shaping the future of our Gardens, but in inspiring more people to value and protect the natural world.”

Alex is expected to take up his post at RBG Kew in July 2025, replacing Simon Toomer after three and a half years at RBG Kew. During his time as Curator of Living Collections, Simon Toomer has spearheaded numerous successes for Kew’s world-leading living collections. These include Kew Gardens becoming the third public garden in the UK to receive Plant Healthy accreditation, recognising the quality of its plant health and biosecurity measures, as well as co-authoring Kew’s pioneering Landscape Succession Plan and developing a Living Landscape Plan.

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About the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a world-famous scientific organisation, internationally respected for its outstanding collections and scientific expertise in plant and fungal diversity, conservation, and sustainable development in the UK and around the globe. Kew’s scientists and partners lead the way in the fight against biodiversity loss and finding nature-based solutions to the climate crisis, aided by five key scientific priorities outlined in Kew’s Science Strategy 2021-2025. Kew Gardens is also a major international and top London visitor attraction. Kew’s 132 hectares of historic, landscaped gardens, and Wakehurst, Kew’s Wild Botanic Garden and ‘living laboratory’, attract over 2.5 million visits every year. Kew Gardens was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2003 and celebrated its 260th anniversary in 2019. Wakehurst is home to the Millennium Seed Bank, the largest wild plant seed bank in the world and a safeguard against the disastrous effects of climate change and biodiversity loss. RBG Kew received approximately one third of its funding from Government through the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and research councils. Further funding needs to support RBG Kew’s vital scientific and educational work comes from donors, memberships and commercial activity including ticket sales. For tickets, please visit www.kew.org/kew-gardens/visit-kew-gardens/tickets. In the first six months since implementing a new accessibility scheme for those in receipt of Universal Credit, Pension Credit and Legacy Benefits, Kew has welcomed over 100,000 visitors with £1 tickets.