Chollipo Arboretum

Chollipo Arboretum (천리포 수목원/千里浦樹木園) is a botanical garden dedicted by an American-Korean Carl Ferris Miller turned to Min Byung-gal.

Spring is the season of forsythias (개나리), azaleas (진달래), apricot (살구) flowers and cherry blossoms (벚꽃), but the magnolia is loved by many people. They feel somewhat nostalgic and romantic from the following lylics when they look at white magnolia flowers in the warm, spring sunlight:
 * In the shade of the magnolia tree, I read a letter from Werter (written by Poet Park Mok-wol);
 * Oh my love, magnolia (written by Dr. Choue Young-seek, founder of Kyung Hee University)
 * When white magnolia flowers bloom, I remember him (sung by Yang Hee-eun)
 * He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. (quoted from Psalms 1:3)

Key words
magnolia, Min Byung-gal, Kyung Hee Universty

A journalist's recommendation
For those who like magnolia flowers, I would like to recommend a trip to the Chollipo Arboretum in Taean, South Chungcheong, which is the best arboretum in the world, according to the Magnolia Society International. The arboretum has more than 400 magnolia species. From the magnolia biondii, which buds in March, to the magnolia grandiflora, which blossoms in early winter, there are all kinds of magnolias for every season. Before April passes, I plan to visit Chollipo to appreciate the beauty of the magnolias.

History of Chollipo Arboretum
The founder of the Chollipo Arboretum is Carl Ferris Miller, a former U.S. naval officer who became a naturalized Korean citizen in 1979. Miller came to Korea after the country's liberation from Japan in 1945 and lived here for 57 years. He worked for the Bank of Korea as an English counselor.

He liked to say that he was a Korean in his previous life and loved the culture and nature of the country. The arboretum was his life project. In 1970, he began planting trees in the barren hills of Chollipo Village in Taean Peninsula, and created the world-class arboretum after 30 years.

Before he passed away at age 81 on April 8, 2002, he donated the 140-acre arboretum, in which he had invested about 100 billion won of his fortune. On the 10th anniversary of his death, the Chollipo Arboretum honored him with a memorial service. His remains was cremated and his ashes buried under a raspberry fun tree, a magnolia and loebneri hybrid that yields pink flowers. Having devoted his whole life to nature, he gave his last remains to the trees.

Dedicated to tree lovers
In celebration of his legacy, the first biography of Miller, whose Korean name was Min Byung-gal, has been published. The book, "I Am Sorry, Trees," was written by former journalist and personal friend Lim Jun-su and illustrates Miller's love for trees and his life in Korea.

The biography is a meaningful contribution to the remembrance of his life and work. Miller would also be pleased to know that philanthropist Son Chang-geun has donated 1,580 acres of forests and fields to the government in order to prevent the destruction of nature due to reckless development.