Adapting to the shifting garden of May

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Adapting to the shifting garden of May

Published: 28 May. 2025, 00:05

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Oh Kyung-ah

The author is a garden designer and the CEO of OhGardens.

May, often hailed as the queen of seasons, brings with it a garden in transition. Early spring flowers fade, leaving behind weary flower beds. Weeds emerge with renewed vigor, and the gardener enters an inevitable tug-of-war with wild growth. Following Ipha (May 5) and moving toward Soman season (which falls around May 21 but shifts slightly each year based on the solar calendar), the season becomes increasingly sun-drenched. Traditionally viewed as the true beginning of the agricultural calendar, this period signals the harvesting of barley, transplanting of rice and planting of a wide range of vegetables.

A Garden in May. [OH KYUNG-AH]

Yet the weather in May remains unpredictable. As the Korean proverb goes, “An old man may freeze to death in the winds of Soman.” Chilly spells return without warning, while midday temperatures can feel like the height of summer. This stark fluctuation challenges both plants and people, straining their ability to adapt.

After days spent indoors battling the aches of a mild illness, the author recounts stumbling upon a history book. Within its pages emerged a striking parallel between the resilience of gardens and a pivotal moment in Western civilization. Art historian Ernst Gombrich pointed to a remarkable phenomenon around 500 B.C., a time he described as historically perplexing.

During the Greco-Persian Wars, the vast Persian Empire under Darius I was in its prime, while the Greek world was a loose alliance of city-states. Despite the imbalance, the Greeks resisted and eventually prevailed. Their stand at Marathon — where a soldier’s legendary run to Athens later gave birth to the modern race — and their naval triumph at Salamis were more than military victories.

According to Gombrich, the Greeks' strength lay not in political structure or brute force, but in their sensitivity to change and their drive for innovation. Their refusal to be complacent fueled their resistance against the empire.

A similar principle plays out in the garden. Constantly exposed to wind, rain, and fluctuating temperatures, the natural world does not yield. Instead, its inhabitants — both plant and animal — adjust, evolve and persist. Beneath their fragile appearance lies a quiet, enduring power.

Even as physical ailments accompany the shifting season, the garden offers a subtle lesson. Survival belongs not to the strongest, but to those most responsive to change. May's turbulence reminds us that adaptation, not avoidance, is the key to growth — in history, in nature and in ourselves.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.