Sun, soil and sweat: Gardening club cultivates Seoul's green spaces through community spirit

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Sun, soil and sweat: Gardening club cultivates Seoul's green spaces through community spirit

Published: 23 May. 2025, 16:56 Updated: 23 May. 2025, 16:59

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A couple carries a plant together while creating a garden at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, as part of a city-run gardening club activity on May 21. [PARK SANG-MOON]

For Lee Min-ji, a 29-year-old university faculty staffer turned arboretum trainee, gardening is more than just a new career path.

"I'm sweating, but it feels so good," Lee said as she took a break under the shade of a tree during a gardening club activity at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, on Wednesday.

Seoul International Garden Show begins with 111 gardens on display

Lee previously worked at a university but switched careers to follow her passion in gardening: first joining a landscaping firm, then training at an arboretum.

"It’s an honor to help create a garden bearing our name in a park as iconic as Boramae," she added.

Lee is one of 25 members of the Boramae Gardening Club, organized by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to encourage hands-on involvement in urban greening.

Despite temperatures climbing to 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit), with the morning marking the hottest in May at 23 degrees, participants stayed focused, shielding themselves from the sun with wide-brimmed hats, sunglasses and UV-protective arm sleeves.

Gardening club members shovel and plant flowers while creating a garden at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, as part of a city-run gardening club activity on May 21. [PARK SANG-MOON]

The latest edition of the program, now in its second year, launched on April 23 with three training sessions on garden design, plant selection and layout. Open to Seoul residents aged 19 to 39, it costs 15,000 won ($11) to join. Its broader goal is to empower young people to help shape a greener city and make gardening more accessible.

“A lot of Seoul residents can’t have private gardens due to the city’s layout,” a city official explained, referring to how many Seoul residents live in densely packed apartments without yards.

“This program offers them a chance to create and care for a shared garden.”

The latest cohort completed their garden just one day before the Seoul International Garden Show kicked off on Thursday at Boramae Park. The annual show, which features 111 gardens this year, runs through Oct. 20.

From bare land to blooming beauty

At 2 p.m. on Wednesday, the designated garden site in Boramae Park was little more than a bare patch of soil. But the plot of land soon came to life as the young gardeners began shaping their project from scratch, planting red, pink and white flowers, including liatris spicata and peonies.

Gardening club members carry bags of bed soil while creating a garden at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, as part of a city-run gardening club activity on May 21. [PARK SANG-MOON]

Garden designer and instructor Kwon Ah-lin marked off sections for plant beds and walking paths. The center of the circular layout was left open for visitors to stroll through and admire the blooms.

The group began by mixing fertilizer into the soil. Despite the heat, they worked with care: raking, planting and patting down the earth as sweat dripped from under their hats.

Recognizing the heat, instructors encouraged participants to rest, hydrate and take turns working. Kwon provided printouts of detailed design layouts, showing where each plant should go. The layout included a gradient from light-colored to dark-colored blooms, as well as a mix of heights and seasonal plants to ensure the garden stays appealing year-round.

For the final step, they layered the soil with wood chips to retain moisture and conceal bare spots.

A gardening club member carries a plant while creating a garden at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, as part of a city-run gardening club activity on May 21. [PARK SANG-MOON]

“In a dense city like Seoul, gardens offer a way to new life without tearing anything down,” Kwon said. “Beautiful gardens invite people to linger, foster appreciation for plants and build community.”

Jang Jeung-eun, CEO of Green Work Shop, which runs horticultural therapy sessions, emphasized the mental and physical benefits of gardening.

“I even use plant-based activities to help students dealing with school-related difficulties,” she said, adding that gardening helped students clarify their goals during her thesis research.

A shared experience

Gardening has become a growing trend in Korea, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic limited outdoor activities in crowded settings. According to SSG.com, sales of gardening products surged 147 percent from February to April 2020 compared to the previous two months.

Thanks to the continuing trend, the domestic market for controlled environment agriculture is projected to grow by an average of 75 percent annually, from 121.6 billion won in 2021 to 1.7 trillion won in 2026, according to the Korea Invention Promotion Association.

A gardening club member takes selfies after completing the garden at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, on May 21. [PARK SANG-MOON]

A garden created by a city-run gardening club blooms with flowers at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, on May 21.[PARK SANG-MOON]

Reflecting such horticultural enthusiasm, the city government's program also drew friends and couples with a green thumb.

"I really enjoyed the professional-level sessions,” said 35-year-old Kim Se-young, who joined with a friend. “I was surprised by how many gardening experts were involved.”

Kim, who tends to plants as a hobby, said the program deepened her knowledge of cultivating. “It’s my dream to have a house with my own garden someday,” she added.

The garden created by the Boramae Gardening Club will be maintained by the participants and volunteers who register through the city’s website.

Gardening club members create a garden at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, as part of a city-run gardening club activity on May 21. [PARK SANG-MOON]

The city government plans to expand these programs with events designed to engage locals and tourists, as part of Seoul’s broader goal to evolve into a “garden city” built by and for its residents.

In July, the city plans to launch a program for international residents and tourists to experience gardening and learn about Korea's wildflowers on Mount Namsan.

Through October, the Seoul International Garden Show will continue at Boramae Park, featuring gardens created by designers, businesses, public institutions, local governments and individual citizens. Public programs will also be available, including photo zones for weddings, garden reading spaces and a market for gardening and leisure-related goods.

Despite the sweltering weather on Wednesday, gardening club members enjoyed the peaceful yet strenuous work.

People visit the Seoul International Garden Show at Boramae Park in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, on May 22. [YONHAP]

Among them was Seo Seok-hyeon, a 29-year-old from Gangseo District, who joined the program with his wife, an employee at a landscaping company.

“It was a great way to spend time together and indirectly experience her world,” he said. “And after working this hard, maybe it’ll even help cure my insomnia.”

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]