Stadaudzetava "Arites"

The farm is in the centre of the Sēlija Administrative District, and it is quite far from large cities, villages and neighbours.  Guests ride through a small grove of pine trees and find themselves in a place where there are large rose beds with more than 400 types of roses.  At the top of the hillock are greenhouses where various flowers and vegetables are grown.  More than 500 types of rose plants can be viewed and purchased. 

The Līcis family has been running the Grekāņi farm for more than 20 years.  The lady of the house is Ilze, and she is the granddaughter of one of the first Latvian breeders of roses, Jānis Braslis.  She is a graduate of the Bulduri Gardening Technical School and its flower breeding department.  The man of the house, Pēteris, has received a diploma in tending to the land.  Growing flowers and tending to their garden are hobbies for the family.  They have a small plant farm and a garden of roses which is constantly supplemented with new types.  Visits to the farm will depend on the season.  Contact the venue in advance.

THE PROGRAMME:

• A visit to the farm to meet its owners and to look at the flowerbeds of roses or greenhouses; the owners will talk about groups and types of roses and the way in which they are grown;
• In April and early May, visitors can work at the greenhouses to organise compositions of decorative or edible plants in decorative dishware or balcony boxes that can be purchased;
• When roses are blooming, visitors can stroll through the garden to learn about the types of roses and collect rose petals to brew rose tea or dry them into bags of aromas.