Plant messiah

From the world's tiniest waterlily to the 'Coral Tree', Carlos Magdalena has an uncanny ability to bring rare, breathtakingly beautiful plants back from the brink of extinction. As a botanical horticulturist at London's famous Kew Gardens - the most biodiverse place on the planet - he has over 7,000 species under his care in his 'Noah's Ark' plant nursery. He is famous for his pioneering work with waterlilies, battling to save rare specimens against ecological destruction and thieves hunting them for wealthy collectors. Carlos travels to remote and dangerous locations - from the jungles of Mauritius to the most remote areas of the Australian outback - and develops ground-breaking, left-field techniques to encourage plants to propagate. Here are his stories of these incredible plants and a lifetime spent racing to save them.