Postcard from Bishkek

March has arrived – Spring is here … so now we turn our attention to a number of annual tasks … in particular, Bakchilik -or  Gardening.

When we built the Silk Road Lodge, back in 1999 and 2000, we were allocated the land on which the hotel stood … it’s leased to us for 49 years because, as we are more than 20% owned by foreigners, we can’t be assigned the freehold.  The authorities also told us that we had to landscape the surrounding territory … which we did.

We planted, for example, Fir trees and shrubs and some climbing roses against the fence.  When we were told that we had to remove the fence, because the land wasn’t ours but public property … but we managed to hold on to some panels of the fence to provide a trellis for the climbing rose.

Many guests like the garden and in the long summer nights they may sit outside have a drink and a snack from the restaurant.  In fact, many people praise the garden … as a quite spot in the city center … but it doesn’t dimply happen … it’s the result of hard work by a couple of our staff who have taken it under their wing.

Last weekend, with temperatures rising into the 20’s leaf buds started to appear on the shrubs and we began the ritual clean up … sweeping up the fallen leaves – especially any that might show signs of rot or other fungus, thinning out the shrubs of any dead or damaged branches to encourage stranger growth.  I am not sure if the apple trees need pruning … but we’ll look at that.

We’ve raked the grass and are looking at bare patches of soil – we have one area where it has always been difficult to grow grass … but that seems to have been solved at last, as it looks quite promising now.

We have to get the soil ready in the flower beds … plant out some bulbs like Hyacinth or Daffodils and clean up the beds with the perennial plants.  Then there are the Roses to worry about; pruning and feeding.

As most gardeners will know all too well … it may look simple, but there’s a lot involved in creating an overall effect … indeed, it’s a never ending job … but we think it is worth the effort.

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Here’s a video shot by a drone as flew over the hotel last summer … (my first reaction when I saw it was that it looks like a computer animation … but it isn’t … you can see the shadow of the the drone as it flies over.)

 

 

 

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