Charles Darwin’s voyages on the HMS Beagle were central to his theory of evolution. But the people who supported him on these journeys of exploration are often overlooked.

This week the life of Robert FitzRoy - Darwin's Captain of HMS Beagle, was commemmorated through the planting of a Fitzroya cupressoides tree at Darwin's former family home of Down House in Kent. The rare conifer originates from South America, and will stand in the scientist’s garden in memory of Robert, who was a pioneering scientist and meteorologist in his own right.

The planting is especially significant as the cutting, which was cultivated and donated by the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) , was collected from a remnant tree in Chile that was almost certainly in view when Darwin and Fitzroy sailed around the South American coastline. Sadly, deforestation has almost completely wiped out this rich forest. This is why the protection of these plants today is so important.

The Fitzroya is one of the oldest known living plants, with some estimates putting specimens at about 3,300 years old, which accounts for the massive size of some of specimens reported in South America. For more than three centuries, however, it has suffered from over-exploitation due to its highly prized wood, and damage by fire and conversion of forest to pasture land.

The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh has led research on the collections brought back to the UK in the 19th Century, and today leads the way in distributing the cultivation of the conifer. Martin Gardner, Coordinator of the International Conifer Conservation Programme at the RGBE, said:

“Planting the Fitzroya cupressoides at Down House is a great opportunity to tell the extraordinary story of this famous tree, and to raise awareness of the plight of conifers worldwide. Plants like this one have the potential to be used to restore depleted populations across the world if habitat-loss continues.”

Visitors can help English Heritage celebrate this fantastic story, and stand in the study where Darwin wrote 'On the Origin of Species' at Down House.

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