Linking the Southwest Coastal Ecological Garden City
with Private Gardens
Haenam County in Jeollanam-do (Governor Myung Hyun-kwan) is drawing the blueprint for a livable and beautiful "Capital of Rural and Fishing Villages, Haenam" by creating a "garden city" where gardens can be found everywhere in each village.
According to the county on the 6th, a "Masil Garden" project will be carried out, where residents directly create and maintain small gardens. This pilot project, being implemented this year, will establish one Masil Garden in each of the 14 towns and townships.
The Masil Garden is a small-scale garden created by local residents utilizing county-owned land or other areas with low utility value that are difficult to manage. In December last year, business proposals from the 14 towns and townships were collected through a demand survey, and the final sites were selected last month after on-site evaluations. The quality of the gardens will be enhanced through consultations from the garden creation advisory group of the Korea Arboretum and Garden Management Institute and the involvement of professional "garden designers." Both the basic concept and detailed design will be pursued simultaneously, with the goal of completing the gardens by the end of this year.
A view of Sani Garden, which opened last year, private gardens Mungarden and Biwon, the first private arboretum in Haenam, Forest Arboretum. Provided by Haenam County
The Masil Gardens will be created with unique characteristics that reflect each of the 14 towns and townships. There will be storytelling gardens based on the place names of Sugungga, healing walking gardens linked to regional development projects, and breathing gardens utilizing cultural heritage sites. The plan is to create pleasant green spaces where anyone can comfortably sit and rest, while enjoying a variety of beautiful flowers and trees throughout all four seasons.
To create sustainable rural and fishing village landscapes and improve living conditions, the county is actively promoting various garden creation projects with the goal of making Haenam a "garden city." The new paradigm of a southwest coastal ecological garden city, which expands gardens to the entire city, will begin construction this year on a 580,000-square-meter site within the Solaseado Corporate City development zone.
In addition to the Sani Garden, which opened last year, nine private gardens have also been established. Mungarden and Biwon, the first and second private gardens in Haenam, as well as Forest Arboretum, the first private arboretum in Haenam, are seeing increasing numbers of visitors each year and are playing a significant role in boosting the local population.
Recently, the Gil Garden, utilizing the wild green tea fields of Daeheungsa, and the Gosano Uga Garden, a traditional Korean garden within the Gosan Historic Site, have also opened, offering tourists a glimpse of Haenam's unique garden culture.
Village gardens and private gardens created directly by local residents can be found throughout Haenam, and it is expected that the creation of the Masil Gardens will serve as an opportunity to spread garden culture centered on residential areas.
Governor Myung Hyun-kwan said, "I expect that the creation of the Masil Gardens will not only serve as an opportunity for Haenam to transform into a more beautiful and livable garden city but also foster a sense of community among residents regarding garden culture. We will ensure that the creation of a garden city becomes the foundation for completing the blueprint of 'the capital of rural and fishing villages, Haenam' by improving living conditions for sustainable rural development."
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