Ogose Bairin, Plum Blossom grove, is one of the three great plum blossom gardens of the Kanto Plain. The Kanto plain is the area around Tokyo including Saitama, Kanagawa, Chiba, Ibaraki, Gunma and Tochigi prefectures. The most famous of the three plum blossom groves however, is Kairakuen in Mito City, Ibaraki. The other is Soga Bairin in Kanagawa.
The Ogose plum blossoms tend to bloom from mid February to mid March. Accordingly, the festival is generally held around the same period. During the period of the festival it costs ￥300 to enter the plum grove.
Outside the festival period, you can view the blossoms for free. Within the two hectare park, there are approximately 1000 plum blossoms including 200 ancient plum trees. Throughout the town of Ogose there are approximately 20,000 plum blossom trees.
During the period of the festival, they have a mini train that winds its way through the grove. There are also live music and dance performances. They have a few festival stalls selling things like chocolate banana and candy floss. There are a couple of places you can buy proper food too. They also sell plum blossom trees and bonsai at the festival. The very cute town mascot "umerin" also makes an appearance on weekends.
