Kew gardens is getting £15 million worth of Government funding to digitise its plants collection.

The money will allow researchers from across the globe to access the historic collection free of charge. 

Kew’s Herbarium houses over 8 million plant and fungal specimens dating back 170 years, including some collected by Charles Darwin. 

The Government says digitising it will ensure that it is protected from gradual deterioration with age or catastrophic loss from fire.