South Korean Holidays - Arbor Day (Sikmogil)

South Korea's annual Arbor Day is celebrated on April 5th There are few public holidays in the country; they are often not declared days off Tree Planting Day ceased to be a non-working day in 2006, but remains a solemn and beloved holiday The territory of South Korea after the Japanese occupation and the Korean War was like a barren desert Even grass did not cover the rocky mountains A third of all forests were barbarically cut down, destroyed by insect caterpillars and burned The country was facing an environmental disaster The disappearance of forests would lead to the final impoverishment of the population The first president of the republic, Rhee Syngman, set the day April 5, on which every citizen had to contribute to the greening of their native spaces Since then, more than 11 billion trees have been planted in South Korea under a special reforestation program since 1949 The republic's forest service was established This service rated mountain pine, honey locust and alder as the most promising species for heathland planting In the 60s, the head of government, Pan Jeong Hee, introduced harsh laws criminalizing deforestation Through joint efforts, forests were restored on an area of ​​almost 25 million hectares, fertile soils were saved, and their erosion was prevented If the year is not a leap year, then April 5 falls on the 105th day after the winter solstice, the day of Hansika (Cold Food Festival) On this day, Koreans give the fire a rest so that it can be reborn to a new life Any food should be served cold All residents of South Korea go to cemeteries to visit the graves of their relatives People take young tree seedlings with them and use them to plant trees around their burial grounds and surrounding area Then they remove the garbage, straighten the graves and lay out tablecloths with refreshments for the living and the deceased on the burial mounds It is believed that on this day the sky clears and a new spring is coming By planting trees near tombstones, Koreans combine both holidays - Hansik and Green Day Cold Food Day has Chinese roots In China, there is a legend about a faithful servant who chose to burn in a fire with his mother, hugging a willow tree, rather than serve a ruler who had not fulfilled his duty The servant was buried under a burnt willow, and the next year the willow came to life, the ruler wove a wreath from its branches and ordered the fires in all hearths to be extinguished in memory of the dead In Korea, people go to Hansik with willow branches in their hands and do not light a fire