Spring Flower Festival in the Garden of MorningCalm
– Colorful & Beautiful, Morning Calm’s Spring
Welcome to the Garden of Morning Calm! The Garden of Morning Calm is a 330,000m2 flower garden, open year-round for your enjoyment. The moment you enter the garden, you will realize that it is a paradise for photographers, tourists, families and couples, After walking through the garden, full of flowers and lots of large pine trees, you will never forget its freshness. It will remain a permanent memory.
The Garden was conceptualized by Professor Han San-Kyung (Gardening Department, Sahmyook University) while he was serving as an exchange professor in America. He had a vision to make a Korean garden that would be world-famous. The inspiration for the Garden stemmed from a poem written by Sir Tagore, a great Indian poet, who described Korea, during the Yi Dynasty, as “The Land of the Morning Calm.”
The garden is the oldest among private Korean gardens. It is an artistic space with a beautiful balance between Korean curves and asymmetry, plants and other various materials. It was the first to adopt the concept of a “garden” in Korea, and it is a special place that harmonizes classical grace and modern beauty. As a result, it attracts about 600,000 tourists annually.
Scenic walkways, beautifully manicured grass, and flower beds connect the garden’s 20 themes. The Sunken Garden is shaped like the shape of the Korea Peninsula and is carpeted with many kinds of beautiful flowers, so it has become one of the attractions of the garden. It is the most meaningful attraction as well because both sides of the garden are covered with flowers to represent the desire for South and North Korea to be reunited.
The garden houses about 4,500 kinds of plants, including 300 kinds of plants that are native to Baekdu Mountain, the spiritual mountain of the Koreans. The flowers are in bloom from March to November, so the garden is usually full during this period.
The garden is one of Korea’s attractions that makes it possible for you to not only appreciate the beauty of flowers and plants, but also enjoy special displays and festivities every month.
The Prelude to Spring
-Wild Flowers of the Korean Peninsula
In the Wildflower Garden there are various wild flowers from Chukryung Mountain and rare wildflowers from Baekdu Mountain that bloom from the spring to the fall. They are in wonderful harmony with the ponds, brooks and arch-shaped over bridges. People are amazed at the garden’s beauty, which resembles an Oriental painting. The garden is all the more precious because people can appreciate the beauty of Korea’s wild flowers and skillful Korean gardening, and they can see that it is a great asset to preserve. The garden contains about 110 kinds of plants and about 20 kinds of trees. Special wild flowers that are only found in Korea are on display in the Wildflower Exhibition Hall. This special exhibition is open before spring and it showcases about 300 kinds of rare wildflowers that are found in the Korean mountain ranges spanning from Baekdu Mountain, the spiritual mountain of the Koreans, to Halla Mountain, located at the end of the Korean Peninsula. It also includes 200 kinds of wild flowers that grow naturally in the Garden of morning Calm.
-Spring Festival
More than 100,000 gorgeous daffodils, tulips and royal azaleas await you in the spring. Your nose and eyes will be able to appreciate the flowers in full bloom along the beautiful, curved paths. It is also the time when you will be able to enjoy the splendid azaleas, cherry blossoms, bridal wreathes, and Japanese apricots, In particular, the month of May, when royal azaleas are in full bloom, is like a heaven of flowers because the whole garden is full of spring fragrance and sunlight.
Photos
Flower Festival Information
⊙Opening Hours: 9AM ~7PM
(MorningCalm Garden is open every day of the year as follows.)
(Final admission is available one hour before of closing time.)
⊙Admission
| Weekdays (KRW) | Weekends & Holidays (KRW) | |
| Adults | 8,000 | 9,000 |
| Students | 6,000 | 6,500 |
| Children | 5,000 | 5,500 |
⊙Instructions
∙Please do not pick plants (mountain vegetables), soil or insects.
∙Please do not take any pictures inside the flower beds in order to protect the plants.
∙Smoking and drinking are forbidden in all areas of the garden.
∙Please walk only on the designated paths because of the danger of being bitten and stung by snakes and bees. A clinic service is located at the entrance of the ticket office.
⊙Map
*Address: 432 Sumokwon-ro, Sang-myeon, Gaqyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do, 40km northeast of Seoul, Korea
By Hanna, Kwak
Information & Photos by ‘The Garden of MorningCalm’
www.koreatourinformation.com Staff Writers
lee2@seoulcitytour.net