Beolcho is the Korean harvest-festival custom of clearing weeds around family graves before Chuseok.
Families traditionally visit ancestral burial sites during the season and tidy the surrounding area. Removing weeds and cutting back overgrowth is known as beolcho. The practice reflects respect for ancestors and helps prepare graves for family visits during the holiday.
Beolcho is different from seongmyo, the broader custom of visiting and tending ancestral graves. Seongmyo can describe the grave visit itself, while beolcho specifically refers to trimming vegetation and cleaning the burial surroundings.
The custom is tied to Korea’s agricultural calendar and the late-summer or early-autumn landscape. Although modern families may live far from ancestral villages or use maintained cemeteries, grave visits and cemetery care remain important parts of Chuseok observance for many people.