Kaore Plum Garden

Located about 35 minutes by car from the Shinshiro Interchange on the Shintomei Expressway, this plum grove in the Kaore district of Shinshiro City reaches full bloom around March 20 every year. Including the Nanko-ume variety, there are seven kinds of about 1,500 plum trees. The entire hamlet is now a plum grove, creating a peaceful landscape where you can catch glimpses of the plum farmhouses between the trees. The landscape stretching between the mountains is like a little slice of paradise, and in 2010 it was selected as one of Japan's top 100 village scenes. Their Baika Festival held in March is a good time to buy specialty items made with plums.