GYEONGSANGBUK-DOAGRICULTURAL RESEARCH& EXTENSION SERVICES

The Seongju Korean Melon Fruit & Vegetable Research Institute at GBARES is located on a site 80 meters above sea level and 12 kilometers west of Seongju-eup. It was founded on November 11, 1994 in the nation’s largest cultivated area for Korean Melons, with the Nakdonggang River to the east and Gayasan Mountain to the west, to increase the income of farming households and the competitiveness of vegetable and fruit farming techniques.

The Seongju Korean Melon Fruit & Vegetable Research Institute has a total staff of nine, include six researchers and three technicians. It stands on a 39,600㎡ lot and consists of five buildings, including a lab, storage facility and administrative office. It currently possesses 153 pieces of equipment, including 97 test devices and equipment for farming. The 33,000㎡ lab experiment field has 41 greenhouses, including ones for seedlings, generation shortening, and cultivation. These greenhouses are used for a diverse range of experiments and research, including on the cultivation of Korean Melon varieties, improvement of cultivation technologies and disease/pest control. Since its founding as an experimental farm in 1994, the institute has accumulated 1,475 pieces of genetic resources on Cucurbitaceae fruit both from Korea and other countries. It has applied research outcomes to 15 instances of farming activity and published 22 papers in Korean and foreign academic journals. The Korean Melon Research Club, made up of 220 Korean Melon farmers in Gyeongsangbuk-do, is actively engaged in efforts to maintain the high quality of local melons (the Korean Melon is a specialty crop). The Institute does not yet have an extensive record of research results due to its relatively short history, but with the accumulation of research technology in the near future, it is expected to contribute significantly to increasing the income of local fruit growers.