SEOUL BOTANIC PARK IN BLOOM
04 Jun 2019
The largest greenhouse to be built in South Korea, the recently opened Seoul Botanic Park features a theme park, forest, lake garden and wetland garden, all housed under a sustainable, flower-inspired glass roof. The greenhouse's themed zones feature exotic plants from 12 botanical cultures and climates across the world.
Seoul Botanic Park is designed by architect Chan-Joong Kim, landscape artist Ou-Gon Jon, and master planner Zoh Kyung-Jin. The greenhouse features themed plant zones where the exotic flora hail from 12 cities across the world: Hanoi, Sao Paulo, Jakarta, Bogota, Perth, Barcelona, San Francisco, Rome, Tashkent, Athens, Istanbul and Cape Town. Each plant type represents its own unique botanical culture and climate. 
The park’s eye-catching glass dome is shaped like a flower and is designed to be “Lower in the middle and higher along the edge”, according to architect Chan-Joong Kim. This shape contrasts the traditional design of the space and is intended to hance visitor experience. The roof utilises ETFE glazing that allows for optimised lighting of the observatory, while the lightweight material reduces carbon dioxide emissions. 
A skywalk stretches across the upper canopy of the garden inside the greenhouse, providing extensive views of the exotic range of plants and the space, which is the size of seven football fields. A series of mini hot air balloons float high up in the space, providing an air of whimsey to the greenhouse. 
The park is intended to be a place for locals and tourists to socialise, relax and engage with nature.
Seoul Botanic Park officially opened in May 2019.
Images courtesy of the Seoul Metropolitan Government
