Urban Beekeeping Honeybee School Applications Open... Green Space Project with Gwangjin Residents Flourishes

[Seoul District News] Gwangjin-gu Opens April Mushroom Experience Class and Urban Beekeeping Honeybee School Registration... Spare and Box Gardens Fully Leased, Urban Farmer School Scheduled... Gangbuk-gu Supports Tree Care for 'Sick Trees' in Residential Areas

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Gwangjin-gu (Mayor Kim Seon-gap) is in full swing in April to create a city full of greenery together with its residents.

Gwangjin-gu is a place where you can enjoy both the Han River and Achasan Mountain at once, and unique green space projects suited to the local characteristics are actively underway. Especially, with spring being the best season to cultivate greenery, various green projects are prepared.

First, in April, applications are being accepted for the ‘Mureok Mureok Mushroom Experience Class’ and the ‘Urban Beekeeping Honeybee School.’

The ‘Mureok Mureok Mushroom Experience Class’ is designed to provide residents with mushroom cultivation education and harvesting experience, offering the joy of growing and an opportunity to encounter good natural food. It is conducted with 90 Gwangjin-gu residents and five daycare centers/kindergartens selected, and classes take place in the leftover garden plots in Gwangjang-dong. The course is free, and registration closes on a first-come, first-served basis starting April 11.

As honeybees are disappearing and becoming an ecological issue, there is also a helpful program. The ‘Urban Beekeeping Honeybee School’ provides theoretical and practical education on basic beekeeping and seasonal bee management, offering residents an easy opportunity to engage in urban beekeeping. Classes are held in the leftover garden plots in Gwangjang-dong, selecting 20 residents from applicants to run a 10-lecture course until June. The tuition fee is 20,000 KRW, and applications open from April 4 on a first-come, first-served basis.

Earlier, the district provided opportunities for residents to experience crop cultivation in the city through the distribution of ‘leftover garden plots’ and ‘box gardens.’ Until March, applications were accepted from residents and organizations for three leftover garden plots totaling 264 sections and 3,050 eco-friendly box garden sets, and distribution was completed with high competition.

In the future, the ‘Urban Farmer School,’ which combines theoretical lectures and field practice to provide efficient urban agriculture education, is also planned.

Especially this year, the district is making special efforts to create green spaces cultivated and developed together with residents rather than government-led projects. To this end, last year, the Seoul Metropolitan Government Gwangjin-gu Urban Greening Support Ordinance was enacted to establish a legal basis for support, and starting this year, ‘Living Area Tree Planting Support Project’ and ‘Living Area Hazardous Tree Maintenance Support Project’ targeting private properties have begun.

The ‘Living Area Tree Planting Support Project’ supports tall trees such as magnolia, king cherry, and plum trees, and small trees such as roses, blueberries, and evergreen trees on private properties including detached houses, daycare centers, senior centers, and schools, encouraging joint green space cultivation by the district and private sectors. Applications for target sites were accepted in March and were completed early due to strong resident response.

The ‘Living Area Hazardous Tree Maintenance Support Project’ supports tree removal and pruning directly by the district for hazardous trees on detached houses, senior centers, schools, etc., considering that residents find it difficult to maintain them individually. Applications are currently accepted on an ongoing basis, but due to high demand, maintenance will be carried out sequentially in the second half of the year based on risk level.

For more details, contact the Parks and Greenery Division or refer to the district website.

Kim Seon-gap, Mayor of Gwangjin-gu, said, “Cultivating green spaces is an important project that enriches residents’ quality of life and solves environmental problems, so we ask for the participation and cooperation of many residents to create greener and safer green environments.”

Gangbuk-gu (Mayor Park Gyeom-su) is operating ‘Living Area Tree Diagnosis Private Consulting’ targeting green spaces in multi-use living areas.

Tree diagnosis private consulting is a service that supports diagnosis and prescription issuance for various diseases and pests occurring in trees, including appropriate control methods and tree management techniques. The consulting is conducted by private tree hospital tree diagnosis experts.

The support targets green spaces in multi-use living areas such as school forests, social welfare, and youth facilities, excluding privately owned green spaces and trees or sites that do not meet the purpose of private consulting.

The consulting service is free of charge, fully supported by Gangbuk-gu and Seoul City. However, tree management institutions receiving consulting must cooperate with requests for necessary materials, locations, and access for tree diagnosis.

Those wishing to receive tree diagnosis should fill out an application form and submit it by mail (Parks and Greenery Division, 5th floor, 13 Dobong-ro 89-gil, Gangbuk-gu), email, or fax to the Gangbuk-gu Parks and Greenery Division.

For the application form and other details, contact the Gangbuk-gu Parks and Greenery Division.

The analysis data after consulting will be used as basic data for the Korea Forest Service’s forest pest policy materials and system improvements in the future.

The district expects this project to improve the efficiency of pest control work and establish a professional diagnosis system for living area trees.

Park Gyeom-su, Mayor of Gangbuk-gu, said, “Due to rapid climate change causing outbreaks of pests and diseases, tree management in living areas is becoming increasingly important. We will do our best to ensure the project is thorough and to help places struggling with tree management and create beautiful green spaces.”