With urban environmental problems, climate change, food crisis and increase in income and leisure time, there has been an increasing public interest in urban agriculture. The urban agriculture is expected to bring about change the overall perception on agriculture of Korea in addition to positive recognition for domestic agricultural products through direct cultivation of crops by townsmen. In the midst of the increase in demand for urban agriculture and interest in expected effects, the law on the development and support of urban agriculture came into force as from May. For the flexible promotion of urban agriculture with the urban agriculture legislation, it is required to conduct an empirical analysis on the characteristics of demand for urban agriculture and factors involved.This study attempted to present empirical evidence on the activation plans for a weekend farm through identification of participants’ characteristics and analysis on the determinants of participation, focusing on the weekend farm, the representative type of urban agriculture. Towards this end, types of the weekend farm were classified in accordance with the type of use, and questionnaire survey was carried out, targeting participants and non-participants. Based on its results, characteristics of participants were identified and determinants of participation were analyzed utilizing statistical analysis and probit model.The major analysis results of this study are as follows. First, participants in weekend farm require education in urban agriculture regardless of use period and whether or not to receive education in urban agriculture and the education in urban agriculture has a positive effect on the participation in weekend farm. Second, participants have high intention to exchange or donate farm surpluses produced through weekend farm. Third, participants have different use patterns depending on the type of weekend farm, and the specific plans for returning to the soil and taking up farming serve as important factors in selection of the patterns. Fourth, positiveness on the agriculture and rural areas and intention to return to the soil and take up farming has a positive effect on the intention to participate in weekend farm. In particular, the current participation in weekend farm has a huge effect on willing to participate.Meanwhile, the above results give the following implications in establishing the strategies to activate weekend farm. First, the education in urban agriculture needs to be expanded to include general townsmen as its targets, and it is required to formulate customized urban agriculture programs suitable for characteristics of participants and type of weekend farm. In addition, plans to secure educational personnel are required for education in urban agriculture within the weekend farm, and it is necessary to develop systems for the exchange and donation of urban agriculture produce.This study suggested the plans to activate weekend farm though identification of participants’ characteristics and analysis on the determinant of participation. However, this study has its limitations in that the research range was limited to some specific areas. In this regard, it is expected that more advanced research can be achieved if data is complemented through a fact-finding survey on the urban agriculture in the near future.
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