The Moscow Kremlin's gardens and adjoining areas are set to return to their appearance during the time of Nicholas II's coronation to mark the return of the nation's long-term leader Vladimir Putin as head of state.
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Landscaping exerts have been working on restoring the pre-revolutionary compositions of the Kremlin and the Alexandrovsky Sad using archival materials, Viktor Khrekhov, spokesman for the Presidential Administration said.

"For these purposes, a team of gardeners together with experts are uprooting and planting new trees, bushes and flowers, checking with archival pictures form the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century," he was quoted by RIA Novosti as saying. "In some of them, the Kremlin is depicted at the time of the coronation of Nicholas II," he added.

Culture Ministry approval

But making the green zones in the very center of Moscow look like they did in 1896, when the last Russian Tsar was crowned, was impossible without dealing with the legacy of the more recent past.

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A vast amount of paperwork had to be done, as uprooting of every tree had to be approved by the Culture Ministry, Khrekov said. Planting new trees had also to be authorised, he added.

Altogether, over 300 trees have been chopped down, including those with various diseases, dead and damaged by storms as well as unauthorized seedlings.

"The main part of works has been completed," Khrekov said. The lawns have been groomed and more garbage bins have been installed, he added.

Older trees spared the axe

Older trees, however, have all remained in their place, including 150-year old oaks and 46 chestnuts on the slope near the Kremlin wall, according the Presidential Administration spokesman.

A special department has been created in the administration to maintain the Kremlin parks and look after the plants growing there.

The autumnal look of the trees chosen for the presidential residence was also taken into account, according to Khrekov, and their foliage and fruits are to display various shades.