Nature
Old plantings, botanical diversity and the waterscape form the basis for future surveys and care recommendations.
Regional natural monument
Zelino Park
A historic estate park and an active protected natural area. Zelino Park connects natural heritage, the noble history of Zalino and a documented early-20th-century estate complex.
Verified facts
The protected area in four facts
- Status
- Active protected area
- Category
- Natural monument
- Established
- Area
- 2 hectares
Natural and historic landscape
Historic park. Estate landscape. Living protected area.
State cadastral material describes Zelino Park as an estate and park of the late 19th and early 20th centuries and records its historic, memorial and architectural value. Archival records from 1918 add the estate of E. I. Zhukova and M. I. Pleskovskaya in Zalino to this history.
An unapproved passport reproduced in the cadastral report associates the site with old-growth mixed woodland, broad-leaved trees and historic, landscape, dendrological and botanical value. These characteristics guide a future survey rather than replace it.
Project direction
Careful restoration of the historic estate park
The candle works remains the main focus of Zelino 1893. Caring for the neighbouring park is a related direction: preserving not only trees and natural communities, but also the historical meaning of its estate landscape.
Estate history
Documents and maps will help establish the properties’ layout and the locations of the house, garden and avenues, without an invented reconstruction.
Careful engagement with the place
The park’s recreational and educational value is considered alongside nature conservation. This is not a promise of unrestricted public access.
Restoration is a project goal. The research foundation is taking shape; physical work and estate reconstruction are not announced as started or approved.
Sources and interpretation
Owners and accounts of the past
Local-history tradition associates the park with Maria and Konstantin Khokhlov and dates its creation to 1894. Scholarly and archival sources show a more complex picture: Zalino contained several estate properties, while 1918 records document the estate of E. I. Zhukova and M. I. Pleskovskaya. Research into the properties and their precise locations continues.
Vegetation in the published inventory
Plants recorded in the park
All 21 names from the protected-area description are reproduced below. The list is not a complete present-day inventory and does not confirm the survival of every specimen.
Tree canopy
The published description names seven kinds of trees in the old park.
7 species
Name from the published inventory
Elm
Representative shown: European white elm · Ulmus laevis Pall.
A deciduous tree with serrated leaves and a dense spreading crown; the inventory does not identify the species.
Name from the published inventory
Ash
Representative shown: European ash · Fraxinus excelsior L.
A tall tree with characteristic compound leaves; the source does not name a particular species.
Specifically recorded in the cadastral report
Small-leaved linden
Tilia cordata Mill.
The only species recorded separately in the cadastral flora table, where it is marked as Red-listed for Tver Region.
Name from the published inventory
Spruce
Representative shown: Norway spruce · Picea abies (L.) H.Karst.
An evergreen conifer with short individual needles; the published description does not identify the species.
Name from the published inventory
Larch
Representative shown: Siberian larch · Larix sibirica Ledeb.
A conifer that sheds its soft needles for winter; the exact species requires field identification.
Name from the published inventory
Silver poplar
Populus alba L.
A tree with silvery-white leaf undersides; the source records a grove of fifteen beyond the Zhuravets stream.
Name from the published inventory
Pine
Representative shown: Scots pine · Pinus sylvestris L.
A light-demanding evergreen with long needles; the inventory does not specify the species.
Understorey and shrubs
Ornamental and naturally occurring shrubs are recorded beneath the tree canopy.
7 species
Name from the published inventory
Siberian peashrub
Caragana arborescens Lam.
A shrub also known as yellow acacia, with paired leaflets and yellow flowers.
Name from the published inventory
Bird cherry
Representative shown: European bird cherry · Prunus padus L.
A shrub or small tree with racemes of white flowers; the source does not identify the species.
Name from the published inventory
Common lilac
Syringa vulgaris L.
A historically widespread park shrub with large fragrant flower clusters.
Name from the published inventory
Elder
Representative shown: Black elder · Sambucus nigra L.
A shrub with compound leaves and flat flower clusters; the particular species requires confirmation.
Name from the published inventory
Hawthorn
Representative shown: Blood-red hawthorn · Crataegus sanguinea Pall.
A thorny shrub or small tree with white flowers and red fruits; the species is not specified.
Name from the published inventory
Rowan
Representative shown: European rowan · Sorbus aucuparia L.
A tree or large shrub with compound leaves and bright fruit clusters; the species is not specified.
Name from the published inventory
Gooseberry
Representative shown: European gooseberry · Ribes uva-crispa L.
A thorny shrub with rounded berries; the origin and exact identity of the plants require survey.
Herb layer
Seven plants are listed as prevalent in the herb layer.
7 species
Name from the published inventory
Kentucky bluegrass
Poa pratensis L.
A perennial grass with narrow leaves and an open panicle, common in meadow and park communities.
Name from the published inventory
Lady's mantle
Representative shown: Common lady's mantle aggregate · Alchemilla vulgaris agg.
A herb with rounded pleated leaves; the published inventory does not name the species.
Name from the published inventory
Stinging nettle
Urtica dioica L.
A tall perennial with opposite serrated leaves and stinging hairs.
Name from the published inventory
Greater plantain
Plantago major L.
A rosette-forming plant with broad leaves and long narrow flower spikes.
Name from the published inventory
Water avens
Geum rivale L.
A moisture-loving herb with nodding, bell-shaped, dusky pink flowers.
Name from the published inventory
Perforate St John's wort
Hypericum perforatum L.
A perennial with yellow flowers and leaves marked by translucent dots.
Name from the published inventory
Meadow knapweed
Centaurea jacea L.
A meadow perennial with large purple-pink flower heads.
Care for the site
Protection regime and inventory gaps
What is protected
The regime reproduced in the cadastral report is intended to preserve the park in its natural state.
- clear-cutting and damage to tree stands are prohibited;
- drainage, land reclamation and peat extraction are not allowed;
- littering and work that disturbs the natural condition are prohibited;
- berries and mushrooms may be gathered only without damaging natural communities and within permitted periods.
The current wording of restrictions must be checked with the competent authority before any work.
What needs clarification
- an exact description and formalisation of the protected-area boundaries;
- the site profile and the need for a buffer zone;
- land users and those responsible for maintaining individual plots;
- the condition of old trees, the stream and the poplar grove;
- a complete inventory of flora, fauna and valuable natural communities.
Conservation through collaboration
An invitation to organisations and specialists
The park needs dendrologists, botanists, hydrologists, protected-area specialists, historic-landscape experts and archival researchers. The first joint outcome should be a verifiable inventory and care recommendations that do not harm the old plantings.
For park survey and conservation enquiries: park@zelino.ru
Sources
- “Zelino Park” — Protected Natural Areas of Tver Region (opens in a new tab).
- Register of regionally protected natural areas in Tver Region (opens in a new tab).
- A. V. Shitkov. “The Kaznakov estate at Zalino”, a section in Lazhechnikov and the Tver Region, issue 3, 2009, pp. 68–70.
- The Zhukova and Pleskovskaya estate questionnaire and archival list: scans and conclusion limits.
- Protected-area cadastral report, file No. 149-P “Zelino Park”, 2016 — a working document from the project archive.
- Legal instruments listed in the protected-area record: Decision No. 273 of 30 July 1986, Decision No. 340 of 25 August 1993 and Order No. 2-kv of 13 January 2015.