Ed Ikin is Chief Executive of outdoor education charity The Ernest Cook Trust, and was previously Director of Wakehurst, Kew's wild botanic garden, and General Manager of Morden Hall Park and Rainham Hall for the National Trust. He is the author of Thoughtful Gardening and Garden Friends.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, are home to the largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world. Founded in 1840,Kew's archives store millions of specimens, botanical illustrations and books. Kew's mission is to understand and protect plants and fungi, for the wellbeing of people and the future of all life on Earth.