Greenhouses of the Ihwa Botanical Garden, Jarasum Island (이화원 식물원 온실)

The Ihwa Botanical Garden occupies Jarasum Island (자라섬), in Gapyeong county. The Korean Wikipedia article describes this island in the Bukhan river as a tourist site, known in particular for its international jazz festival. An article in the Gyeonggi Ilbo dated 13 April 2011 presents the « Ihwa » as an ecological theme park opened « in April of the previous year », that is April 2010, and already describes two numbered greenhouses: the first devoted to subtropical trees, the second to the southern shrubs of the Yeongnam and Honam regions. The same article mentions a 160 m² tea-tasting room and a 38.27 m² exhibition and kitchen space. The present operator, the Gapyeong facilities management corporation (« 공단 »), publishes its presentation and photos of the two greenhouses.

The site has two display greenhouses that the operator calls « 1온실 (서양관) » and « 2온실 (동양관) », the Western and Eastern halls. According to the official page, the first covers 3,100 m² and the second 2,400 m². Photos published by the operator, captioned « 1온실 서양관 전경 » (overall view of the Western greenhouse), show the interior of the western wing: a translucent roof stretched over a fine lattice, tall palms and sandy paths edged with low stone walls. A 2025 visitor blog calls the building a « 유리온실 » (glass greenhouse). According to the same blog, the ground of the western wing is natural earth. The eastern wing includes a pond and a traditional house, which the operator describes as thatched (초가집) and the blog as tile-roofed (기와지붕).

The operator gives 112 taxa for the western wing and 72 for the eastern wing; the page writes « 112종 개체 » and « 72종 개체 ». The western wing holds a subtropical plant garden and a reptile initiation room, according to the same page. The 2025 blog names palms, banana plants and coffee trees there, a large olive tree at the centre, a small artificial stream and a gorilla sculpture in the tropical zone, and an insect room linked to it, with a glass aquarium. The eastern wing is devoted to plants of southern Korea: the 2011 article cites « southern shrubs of the Yeongnam and Honam regions ».

The garden lies on Jarasum Island, in Gapyeong, and covers 34,920 m² according to the operator, of which 29,420 m² are outdoor installations: a visit therefore covers both greenhouses and the open-air spaces. The 2025 blog presents the western wing as the heart of the site, with a central zone, a tropical zone and the insect room attached to it, and then mentions the Korean building of the eastern wing. The island is known for the Jarasum International Jazz Festival, held there, according to the Korean Wikipedia article. Opening hours and admission prices are not repeated in this section; they appear in the status field of the entry.