Damyang-gun Hosts the 2nd Pretty Garden Contest to Promote Everyday Garden Culture

Discovering Hidden Gardens Cultivated by Individuals or Groups

[Damyang=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Chunsu] Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do announced on the 14th that it will hold the "Pretty Garden Contest" to discover beautiful gardens in the region.

Now in its second year, this contest aims to discover gardens voluntarily created and maintained by individuals, cafes, restaurants, groups, and facilities, spreading garden culture in daily life and promoting garden tourism.

In the first contest held last year, Dalbit Garden and Myeongjiwon, which won awards, received the Grand Prize and Excellence Award respectively at the Jeollanam-do Pretty Garden Contest sponsored by the Korea Forest Service, boosting local pride and providing an opportunity to make gardening a part of everyday life by planting flowers and trees themselves.

Applicants wishing to participate can choose between two categories: private gardens and neighborhood gardens. From the 19th until May 7th, they can submit an application form containing the garden’s features and photos to the relevant eup/myeon office.

The judging panel, composed of related experts, will select a total of five gardens, including three awards: Grand Prize, Excellence Award, and Encouragement Award, through document and on-site evaluations. Winners will receive the county governor’s commendation and a plaque.

Im Hongjun, Director of the Forest Garden Division, said, “Starting with the discovery of beautiful hidden gardens everywhere, we will do our best to create the entire Damyang as one garden, linking culture, art, and food to garden ecological tourism, to revitalize the residents who have been depressed due to COVID-19.”

Meanwhile, Damyang-gun is steadily promoting various pending projects such as humanities education, operation of the traditional garden special zone, construction of the Korea Garden Culture Center, and training of garden experts, in line with the county’s policy of becoming an ecological garden city embracing nature, focusing on creating garden infrastructure and developing content.