Aramco Korea, Ulsan sign deal to build indigenous plant garden

Aramco Korea, a subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian energy company, signed a partnership agreement Tuesday with Ulsan Metropolitan City and the Ulsan Metropolitan Council on Social Welfare (UMCSW) to build a new public garden inside Taehwagang National Garden, one of only two national gardens in Korea.

The agreement, signed at Ulsan City Hall, will create the roughly 7,000-square-meter Aramco-Jung Youngsun Ulsan Garden, named after its designer, landscape architect Jung Young-sun, the first Korean recipient of the Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award.

The garden is expected to be completed by late October and will include a forest, wetland, meadow, learning area and conservation zone, planted with more than 73 native Korean species.

Under the deal, Aramco Korea will provide funding, while the city will supply the site and handle operations after completion.

Jung and her firm, Seoahn Total Landscape, will lead design and construction, and the UMCSW will manage the funds and coordinate among the three parties.

Taehwagang National Garden draws about 9.5 million visitors annually.

Attendees at the signin ...