Successfully cultivating lavender in Estonia is considered a unique triumph due to the country's harsh northern climate. Natively a Mediterranean plant, lavender thrives in full sun for at least 8 - 10 hours a day and dry soil. Estonian farmers have proven that with proper care like mulching and frost protection, lavender can be successfully grown in Estonia.
There are two main lavender farms in Estonia. The Hiiumaa Lavender Farm (Lavendlitalu) and Sootsu Lavender Farm (Sootsu Lavendel).
Hiiumaa Lavender Farm is located on the edge of the Kärdla meteorite crater in Western Estonia. The farm features roughly 20,000 plants across nearly 1 hectare and produces organic goods like lavender lotions, balms, tea, jam, soap and honey.
Sootsu Lavender Farm is located in Hatu küla (Lääne-Harju vald) in Northern Estonia. Sootsu Lavender Farm is the largest in Estonia spanning 1.5 hectares with nearly 12,000 Hidcote Blue English lavender plants. The farm offers guided tours and handmade natural products.
Growing lavender has become increasingly popular in Estonia, not only with commercial farmers but also private gardeners who value the plant's alluring scent and medicinal properties. Lavender is a perennial plant that regrows every year with proper pruning and care.
Before traffic lights were built in Estonia, traffic was manually regulated by the police. On the 1st of April 1929, Anton Arumäe was appointed Tallinn’s first traffic police officer. It took the police considerable time to acquire the necessary skills and experience to carry out this role. For a long time, speed was estimated by eye only, and later measured using a stopwatch and special speed charts. Traffic accidents were an inevitable part of the rapidly developing traffic environment.
Speeding was often cited as the primary cause of accidents. However, the speed limit was quite low; passenger cars and motorcycles were not permitted to exceed 25 km/h in the city centre.
One of the major issues police had was frequent drunk driving. The streets of the Old Town, particularly the narrow section of Viru Street, Town Hall Square, Nunne and Mündi streets were considered very dangerous. Many accidents also occurred on Pärnu maantee, which experienced heavy use by people from rural areas.
The first red, yellow and green traffic light in Tallinn was installed in 1947 at the intersection of Pärnu maantee and Suur-Karja tänav. The first pedestrian traffic lights in Tallinn were introduced in 1959. They were installed at the busy intersection of Pärnu mnt, Estonia pst and Freedom Square.
Estonia’s first official postage stamps were issued on the 22nd of November 1918, shortly after the end of World War I. They were known as the 'Flower Design Series' and had nominal values of 5 and 15 kopecks. The stamps were printed by the Bölau Printing House in Nõmme.
Estonia's first stamps featuring the Tallinn skyline (part of the Tallinn Skyline definitive series) were released on the 4th of May 1920. The stamps were designed by Eduard Poland and were printed until 1924.
The yellow 25 penni stamp was the most popular in the series with a total print run of 4,939,000. The Tallinn Skyline stamp series is a valued collection among philatelists.
Colourised photo of Harju Street. The intersection of Niguliste and Kullassepa streets in 1905. On the left stands the Writers' House, and on the right, the monument to Eduard Vilde.
The building on the corner belonged to Adolf Klaff who once owned Tallinn’s oldest stationery and office supply business. He established his business in 1883 at Harju Street 20, and in 1938, the business moved to Harju Street 21.
Harju Street was one of Tallinn’s oldest streets for merchants and artisans. From the 19th century onwards, the city's commercial life began to concentrate there, and by the early years of the Republic of Estonia, it had gradually developed into one of the city's most important business districts.
Many of the buildings on Harju street were destroyed or severely damaged during the Soviet bombing raids of March 1944 but we have these old photographs to remind us how they once were.
