Sinongje Festival Held at Jungnang Happiness 1 Farm, Urban Farming Education Provided for 130 New Urban Farmers
Jungnang Happiness Farms 2, 3, 4, and 5 to Open Sequentially on April 10-11
314 Garden Plots and 171 Pear Trees to Be Leased
Jungnang-gu (Mayor Ryu Gyeong-gi) marked the official start of the year’s farming season by holding the '3rd Sinongje Festival' at Jungnang Happiness 1 Farm on the 8th.
The Jungnang Happiness 1 Farm, where this Sinongje Festival was held, received 1,193 applications, resulting in a 9:1 competition ratio. Among them, 130 newly selected urban farmers participated. Notably, 21 daycare centers also rented garden plots, allowing many children to experience nature firsthand. Participants spent time learning farm management methods and crop cultivation techniques through garden management education.
The Sinongje event was organized by the Jungnang Urban Agriculture Cooperative (Chairman Lee Byung-jun), with about 400 attendees including Mayor Ryu Gyeong-gi of Jungnang-gu, plot renters and their families, children, and volunteers.
Starting with a Samulnori performance by children from the Our Neighborhood Care Center, various programs were held including ▲opening ceremony proclamation ▲reading of congratulatory messages and silent bow ▲Sinongje table setting ▲celebratory performances ▲seedling planting ▲and smart farm strawberry experience for multicultural children.
The district distributed seedlings and young radish seeds to participants in line with the farm opening schedule, and plans to promote solid operation of the urban farms by running various participation programs such as farmer’s diary writing and the 'Garden Contest.'
Following this, Jungnang Happiness 2 and 3 Farms will open on April 10 with garden management education, and Jungnang Happiness 4 and 5 Farms will open on April 11, providing pear tree management education for plot renters. This year, a total of 314 garden plots and 171 pear trees will be rented out.
Mayor Ryu Gyeong-gi of Jungnang-gu said, "I hope children can learn in nature through Jungnang Happiness Farms, and that families and neighbors can communicate and grow closer together." He added, "We will continue to cooperate with the Jungnang Happiness Urban Agriculture Center to operate various education and experience programs and enable more residents to experience urban agriculture."
The district has been operating five Jungnang Happiness Farms since starting with Jungnang Happiness 1 Farm in 2019, and plans to establish a 6th farm in Sinnae-dong this year.
Along with this, soil heavy metal tests are conducted annually before farm openings, and pesticide residue tests on crops are carried out after openings to create a safe crop cultivation environment.
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