Current status of human issues in horticulture in Korea

As the level of urbanization has increased, many people in Korea have begun to recognize the beneficial effects of plants in our immediate surroundings and involvement in horticultural activities. Today, an increasing number of Koreans attempt to improve the quality of life and enhance educational effectiveness through horticultural activities. Kindergarten, elementary, middle, and high schools have initiated garden-based programs. Some universities include courses focusing on horticulture applications to human well-being in their regular graduate programs or in their social education curricula. A few general hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, and rehabilitation centers have begun applying horticulture as a means of treatment. Most of the research articles in Korea on various aspects of human issues in horticulture have been published since the foundation of two academic societies, the (K)orean Horticultural Therapy Association and the Korean Society for Plants, People, and Environment. These articles are primarily focused on the areas of school gardening, healing gardens, and psychological or physiological effects of horticultural activities. For the future development of human issues in horticulture in Korea, several areas need to be enhanced including: interdisciplinary studies of horticulture and social education; development of different skills, techniques, and scales to validate the effects of horticultural therapy, healing gardens, and gardening as a teaching tool in public education; and an organization empowered to certify horticultural therapists.