Seocho-gu opens main garden center, expanding district's green culture hub

Seocho-gu in Seoul held the opening ceremony for the Seocho Garden Center main branch and a gardening festival at Maeheon Citizens' Forest on Monday.

The Seocho Garden Center main branch was created by remodeling a building that had served as a children's traffic safety education facility for more than 20 years since 2002, transforming it into a multipurpose cultural space where residents can enjoy leisure and relaxation. A garden was also laid out along the path connecting the Yangjae Stream riverside walkway to the center, allowing visitors to drop in naturally during a stroll.

About 100 people attended the opening ceremony, including Seocho gardeners and residents of Yangjai 1 and 2 dong, along with Seocho-gu District Mayor Jeon Seong-su, Seocho District Council Speaker Yoo Ji-woong, Seoul Assembly members Kim Ji-hoon and Lee Hyo-jin, and district council members. The event opened with a pre-ceremony performance by young artists, followed by an unveiling, a ribbon-cutting, a commemorative photo session and a tour of the garden center. Guests and residents also took part in a "guestbook garden" planting performance, putting flowers and trees in the ground and hanging wish tags to mark the occasion. A special lecture on garden culture was held in the morning to deepen residents' appreciation of gardening.

The gardening festival held alongside the opening ceremony featured a range of hands-on programs, including an indoor gardening bookshop and outdoor pop-up booths. The "Wheels on Gardening" mobile plant therapy truck — which had drawn crowds at the Seoripul Music Festival and the Seoul International Garden Expo opening ceremony — was displayed on site so visitors could receive companion-plant care consultations.

With the main branch now open, Seocho-gu has established a foundation to expand garden culture education and resident participation alongside the satellite branch that opened at Maljukgeori Park in late February. The 77 Seocho gardeners trained across three cohorts at the Maljukgeori branch have continued volunteering — tending signature green spaces such as Gilmajeung Choroksukilgil and Salon de Garden, and creating alley gardens on unused neighborhood lots.

The district plans to link the Maeheon Citizens' Forest main branch and the Maljukgeori Park satellite branch to offer a range of programs, including basic and advanced gardener training courses and weekend family gardening experiences. It also intends to expand opportunities for residents to engage with garden culture in their daily lives through the "Wheels on Gardening" mobile garden service.

The Seoul International Garden Expo at Maeheon Citizens' Forest runs from Oct. 1 to Oct. 27. In conjunction with the expo, the district is operating a range of events, including hands-on programs at the Seocho Garden Center, the "Yangjae Art Salon" along the Yangjae Stream, and performances by young artists — all aimed at drawing expo visitors to the garden center and deepening public interest in garden culture.

In addition, Seocho gardeners trained at the Maljukgeori branch are directly creating and maintaining the "Seocho District Garden" within the expo grounds, contributing to the spread of garden culture across the area.

"A space that kept children safe for many years has reopened as the Seocho Garden Center — a place of rest and learning for all residents," District Mayor Jeon said. "We will build Seocho into a garden city where anyone can find comfort through plants and enjoy gardens as part of everyday life."