Nagoya Agricultural Centre

Mar 16, 2021

Nagoya Agricultural Centre

With spring well and truly in full swing and the weather improving day by day, now is a great time – before the rain and humidity of the summer arrive – to get outside with the kids and enjoy the great outdoors. But of course, you’ve already taken them to all the parks and the zoo, so what else is there to do with young children so they can commune with nature in the relative safety of an open-air environment? A visit to Nagoya City Agricultural Center, that’s what.

What is the Nagoya City Agricultural Center?

Established on April 1, 1965, Nagoya City Agricultural Center is a large outdoor area that allows young families to have first-hand fun with farming and agriculture right here in the city.

The center has plenty of livestock on the grounds, including various breeds of cows, pigs, and a coop of Nagoya’s famous Cochin chickens. You can get up close and personal with these animals, especially the goats, sheep, and adorable lambs, all of which you can feed with special pellets in the petting zone.

Away from the animals, Nagoya City Agricultural Center is home to a large greenhouse filled with beautiful and exotic flowers. All around the park are beautiful plum and cherry blossom trees, making it an extremely popular place to visit during the spring.

But any time is a good time to go, as the entire area is full of beautiful plants and flowers, making it an ideal place for a picnic. This is particularly true on weekends when there are quite often events being held, with bouncy castles, magic shows, and balloon animal makers to entertain the kids.

For those of you who are a bit more adventurous and have a decent bit of energy to burn, around the grounds are a series of walking trails that take you through enchanting bamboo groves to beautiful ponds by way of gardens and local allotments.

Shopping at Nagoya City Agricultural Center

After a short hike, is there a better way to reward yourselves for your exertion than ice cream? Yes, there is. It’s an ice cream made from the milk of the cows you can see in the field!

In fact, Nagoya City Agricultural Center has a whole array of organic, locally produced foods, fruit, and vegetables on sale, either in the center’s store or from the occasional farmer’s markets that pop up. And what’s more, these products are all pretty cheap, which is not something you might expect!

Gardening at Nagoya City Agricultural Center

There’s a good chance that you’ll want to get involved with all the digging and planting yourself, having seen all of the interesting and exciting agriculture. Of course, very few homes in Nagoya have gardens that allow you to do such things. Fortunately, on May 9, 2021, the Nagoya City Agricultural Center will hold a Peanut Cultivation Experience where, for JPY500, you and your elementary school-aged child can plant peanuts. Then, in October, you can return to harvest them. It’s a fun experience for the whole family.

If you get the gardening bug, why not try out the Nagoya City Agricultural Center’s Civic Garden?

The civic garden is a rental farm where Nagoya’s citizens can enjoy the fun – and challenges – of growing vegetables and maintaining a garden. Furthermore, those of you who man not know a whole lot about farming and growing your own food can take part in the Agriculture School, where you will learn all sorts of interesting and useful skills, and you can obtain assistance from their ‘consultation corner,’ and all equipment is included. There is a total of 80 lots 10 square meters in size, and you can use one for up to one year for just 7,000 JPY.

COVID-19 Restrictions

To prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, the Nagoya Agricultural Center asks that you take the following precautions:

• Check your temperature before you arrive.
• Refrain from visiting if you have cold-like symptoms.
• Install the COCOA coronavirus contact confirmation app.
• Wear a mask at all times.
• Avoid crowded areas and raising your voice.

Also, due to pandemic restrictions, some entrances may be closed. Check their Facebook page for any changes.

Nagoya City Agricultural Center Details

Getting there: By train, take the Tsurumai Line to Hirabari Station; from there, it is a fifteen-minute walk or a short taxi or bus ride to Nagoya Agricultural Center. There are 230 parking spaces for drivers, but be aware that in peak season, waiting times for parking spots can be up to two hours.
Where: 2872-3 Aza kuroishi, Oaza Hirabari, Tenpaku-cho, Tenpa-ku, Nagoya (map)
Website: www.city.nagoya.jp

Images: Mark Guthrie [Own Work]
Image: via wikicommons [CC BY-SA 4.0]

Image: via https://www.city.nagoya.jp/kurashi/category/19-8-4-2-2-0-0-0-0-0.html