Floral Fragrance Fills Goyang
(Published April 27, 2012)

2012 International Horticulture Goyang Korea opens in Lake Park, Ilsan

◇ Fully blooming tulips at Ilsan Lake Park, site of the International Horticulture Goyang Korea ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang
◇ Floral architecture at the outdoor exhibition hall ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang

The 2012 International Horticulture Goyang Korea, the sixth edition of this triennial event first held in 1997, opened in Ilsan Lake Park on April 26, and will run for 18 days until May 13.

This year’s event focused on the theme An Olympic Festival of Flowers from All Around the World in connection with the London Olympics to be held in July. The theme also carries with it the hope that the domestic horticulture industry will be able to compete favorably with more advanced horticultural regions, such as Japan and Europe.

The event, which is being co-hosted by Goyang City and the Goyang International Flower Foundation and co-sponsored by the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MIFAFF) and the Gyeonggi Provincial Government, is being held on a 240,000㎡ site in Ilsan Lake Park with 168 domestic businesses and 146 businesses from foreign countries participating. It boasts a scale far grander than any other similar event held in the past.

This year’s event has been upgraded to a global horticultural event. Over 25 countries are operating national pavilions, and the venue features a Horticultural Business Center and an Export Business Talks Hall as well. Moreover, more than 100 foreign buyers were invited to the event in order to promote international horticultural trade.

Furthermore, as the largest flower festival in Korea, it offers many cultural events such as a flower design contest, a traditional flower arrangement contest, a body flower show, and so on. Diverse experience programs are also open to festival-goers, including flower painting, flower pot making, wild flower making, bonsai making, and herb cactus making.

Indoor and outdoor sites with a combined area of 32,900㎡ incorporate creative landscape architecture, serving as an additional highlight of this year’s event. There are five indoor exhibition halls including the Eco Olympiad Pavilion, three Flower Olympiad Pavilions, and the Korea Special Pavilion.

The Eco Olympiad Pavilion (1,200㎡) is centered on displays designed to “cheer on” the country’s national team at the London Olympics this year, as well as on seven themes, including the launch of the Olympics and the future of horticulture and sports. Special effect devices, such as holograms, water screens, and 3D images, are used to display magnificent images, and approximately 100 specimens of 30 rare plant species from around the world are on display in this pavilion.

As well as displaying national flowers, the three Flower Olympiad Pavilions serve as venues where participating businesses can carry out deals. These halls also display nearly 140 new species of flowers grown by farmers in Goyang and nationwide institutions engaging in agricultural research and support services, as well as pressed flowers and relevant household items.

Visitors to the Korea Special Pavilion can admire the works of famous florists. The hall includes: the Ecological Experience Section, which focuses on insects; the Rare Orchid Section, in which 500 samples of more than 200 species are displayed; and the Horticultural and Decoration Section.
◇ The entrance to the Flower Olympiad Pavilion 1 ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang
◇ Children at the Eco Olympiad Pavilion ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang
◇ Children listen to an explanation of the flowers displayed in the Korea Special Pavilion. ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang

The Outdoor Exhibition attracts visitors intent on enjoying an atmosphere filled with vernal floral fragrances. Must-see courses include: the Secret Love Garden, which is filled with 23,000 roses; the Dream of Flower Garden, decorated with 800,000 tulips, Muscari, and hyacinths; and the Koreans Peace Garden, which features traditional garden facilities of South and North Korea.

Elsewhere, crowds gather to photos of creative floral architecture such as the Goyang Flower Tower, World Flower Tower and Continental Flower Tower.

Mr. Kim Byeong-uk (62) from Haengsin-dong, Goyang, who was busy taking pictures with his cell phone, said, “It’s great to see flower works full of life and artistry. I came here three years ago, but I’ve found more things to see this year.”

Women visitors to the exhibition appeared to be absorbed in the joy of looking at beautiful flowers in the pleasant spring weather. Jeong Hye-suk (50) from Nowon-gu, Seoul, said, “Spring has finally sprung, and I am happy to be surrounded by flowers. I feel as if I’m in the Netherlands, a country of flowers.”

Park So-hyeon (30) from Gyoha, Paju said, “This is my second visit here. This year, the unique structures and floral architecture are really interesting. It is good to see the event growing year after year.”

There were many visitors from foreign cities that have sister ties with Goyang. Keith Regan, the County of Maui’s new managing director in Hawaii, was one of them. He expressed what he felt at the event, saying, “First of all, the sheer scale of the event amazes me. It is a fantastic experience for me. I’ll think of Korea whenever I look at flowers from now on. The grafted cactuses, in particular, attracted my attention.”

It appears that those working in the horticulture business hold particularly high expectations for this year’s event. Goyang Natural Dye Research Society President Chae Eun-gyeong said, “We are selling aprons and scarves dyed with natural materials here. We have been encouraged by the heated atmosphere from the first day.” Kim Min-seon (23), an employee of Nature Design, a business specializing in decorations for display events, said: “There is an endless line of visitors asking questions. I feel this is a propitious sign for our business.”
◇ A visitor admires flowers from Colombia ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang
◇ Foreign visitors view pressed flower works ⓒ G-News Plus / Yu Jae-hun
◇ Dragon-shaped floral architecture made of cacti ⓒ G-News Plus / Heo Seon-ryang

The opening ceremony held on April 26 was attended by numerous dignitaries including Gyeonggi Vice Governor Lee Jae-yul, Goyang Mayor Choi Seong, Assistant Minister of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Park Cheol-su, Representative Kim Tae-won, Representatives-elect Kim Hyun-mee and Yoo Eun-hae, employees of foreign embassies in Korea, and officials of foreign cities that have ties with Goyang. About 3,000 people visited the event on its first day.

Goyang Mayor Choi Seong, chairman of the Goyang International Flower Foundation, said, “This is the sixth edition of the triennial event. We have made efforts to develop the event as a horticulture expo where substantial results can be achieved. We will do what we can to make horticulture one of our strategic sectors.”

In his welcoming speech, Gyeonggi Vice Governor Yee Jae-yul said, “Goyang has emerged as a mecca of horticulture with a special 80-acre horticultural zone in addition to KINTEX, the largest convention center in Northeast Asia, and Hallyuwood. The provincial government will continue to provide support for the city’s efforts to modernize the relevant facilities and develop diverse flower species.”

Almost 200 businesses have participated in each of the triennial events held since 1997. At the last event, a total of 57 trade contracts worth USD 30 million were signed, helping the event secure its position as an international horticulture expo. A total of 510,000 people have visited the event to date.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Government has provided around KRW one to two billion in support for the event on each occasion, and will provide KRW 2 billion for this year’s edition, which will cost about KRW 6 billion in total.
◇ A congratulatory performance at the opening ceremony ⓒ G-News Plus / Yu Jae-hun
◇ Gyeonggi Vice Governor Yee Jae-yul (third from right) poses with other participants at the opening ceremony. ⓒ G-News Plus / Yu Jae-hun

ⓒ G-News Plus / Nam Gyeong-woo / namgw2011@gmail.com

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