November 2013 May 2020 June 2021
I founded my nursery 'NOVA ZAHRADA' after moving to the Czech Republic from Kyrgyzstan in 2014. 'NOVA ZAHRADA' in Czech means 'NEW GARDEN'.
In Kyrgyzstan, I worked as a geologist and, thanks to my work, I got the opportunity to get to know the flora of the Tien Shan better. Close acquaintance with the natural flora over time has changed my idea of what I want and should do.
Itagar valley Sary-Chelek Nature Reserve Suusamyr valley
I consider it important to introduce people to little-known and hard-to-reach plant species from the Tien Shan, a region about which I know quite a lot. Of course, over time, I had my favorites among plants, these are the genera Allium, Tulipa, Iris, Eremurus, primarily (but not only) from the Central Asian region.
I am glad that interest in Allium has recently increased, some species can become a 'eyecatcher' in the garden and a valuable specimen of the collection.
Allium semenovii Allium caeruleum 'Leucanthum' Alium spathulatum
The species of Tulipa have a special charm. Unfortunately, Central Asian tulips, with the exception of well-known species such as Tulipa greigii, T.kaufmanniana, T.fosteriana, are little known in Europe. Moreover, they are little studied in nature either (at least in Kyrgyzstan). There are unresolved questions of taxonomy, there are undescribed species...
Tulipa sp. nova Tulipa cf ostrowskiana Tulipa zenaidae
Fantastic Juno irises grow in Central Asia, which are also little known in culture or only few clones are known, which naturally do not reflect the full variety of forms of these species.
Iris subdecolorata Iris graeberiana Iris orchioides
I was surprised to find that attractive and rare cultivated species from Central Asia can be grown without problems in the Czech climate. Of course, not all, but it's my job to try different species in my garden, find the optimal conditions for growing.
Eremurus cristatus Iris halophila subsp. sogdiana Eremurus tianschanicus
In my work, I keep in touch with botanists from different countries, I am a co-author of the description of the following species:
Fritillaria rugillosa Naumenko & Zubov Juno rodionenkoi Lazkov & Naumenko Eremurus x decoloratus Lazkov & Naumenko
A separate area of my work is the hybridization of daylilies. Perhaps such a mixture of interests seems illogical, but our addictions are not logical. Unfortunately, I am unable to run full scale hybridization programs at this time, but there are some results that I am pleased with.
Hanakia (2020) Welcome to Moritz (2018) Making Purple (2021)
More information about the Tien Shan flora and my work can be found here:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/flora-of-kyrgyzstan-flora-kyrgyzstana
https://www.facebook.com/alexander.naumenko.777
https://www.facebook.com/Nova-Zahrada-666216446822107
Sincerely, Alexander Naumenko