The stability of the Victoria water lily

From nature...

The Victoria water lily is one of the largest freshwater plants in the world. Its leathery floating leaves, about two millimeters thick, are unusually sturdy. A system of ribs on the underside of the leaves, interspersed with air chambers, prevents them from sinking even if they are uniformly loaded with a weight of 60 kilograms.

...in technology

Joseph Paxton (1803-1865) cultivated the Victoria water lily, discovered in the early 19th century, as a particularly valuable botanical rarity in the garden of the Duke of Devonshire. Its sturdy ribbed framework inspired him to create novel greenhouse designs. His Crystal Palace at the 1851 World's Fair in London was particularly famous. It earned him the title of nobleman. The construction method was revolutionary at the time: prefabricated modules enabled a very short construction time of only 6 months. Massive supporting beams ensured the stability of the structure much like the strong radial leaf ribs of the Victoria water lily. Rain gutters arranged at right angles to the beams provided additional stiffness just like the cross braces of the Victoria leaf.

Image captions

Joseph Paxton's daughter Annie on the leaf of a Victoria water lily, pictured
in "The Illustrated London News" in November 1849.

Leaf underside of a Victoria leaf: Thick radially extending leaf veins and narrower transverse struts provide support and buoyancy. Their arrangement follows the leaf veins.

The Crystal Palace, destroyed by fire in 1936, is considered to be the first deliberately biomimetic structure in architectural history.

Text of the information panel at the Botanical Garden Dresden.