The summit addressed some of the issues currently being seen in the harvesting and sales of ginseng from North Carolina.

Part 1

How we got here.

Part 2

How ginseng can thrive in America

Part 3

Creating an American ginseng market in America

Videos provided by the Mountain Stream TV YouTube Channel

Learn more about the 2023 North Carolina Ginseng Summit at ncgoldenseal.com/2023/ginseng-summit-2023.

By Carter Patterson, Environmental Sciences student, University of North Carolina  –

Have you ever been walking through the woods of western North Carolina and happened upon a small plant that looked to be a Hickory tree sapling but with red berries?

My guess is that you probably haven’t. But if you were to go back to the 1600’s, this plant would be all over the temperate forest floor.

The plant described above is known as American ginseng, Panax Quinquefolius, a very important plant that has been used by humans for medical purposes all throughout time. Due to human overharvest, ginseng populations across the eastern United States have experienced a massive decline since European settlement and will disappear completely in the wild if the rate at which ginseng is being harvested does not decline in the near future.

Ginseng has been used as an all ailment cure for hundreds of years. The Cherokee were using it before the Europeans made the sail across the Atlantic, and once the Europeans realized the similarities to its asian sister species, Panax Ginseng, a revolutionary trading system began to arise. In the 18th and 19th centuries, American ginseng was America’s second leading trading product, with only fur being traded in higher volumes. This massive trade system from the United States to China is what initialized the decline of ginseng in the eastern wilderness; unfortunately, this trade is still active and strong today.

While researching North Carolina’s policies and approach to this decline, the North Carolina Ginseng Association was quick to pop up. Founded in 2013 by Robert Eidus, a passionate ginseng enthusiast and expert from New York, the NC Ginseng Association is an organization whose goal is “to produce organically grown ginseng in the woods (forest farming) in America for Americans.”  After speaking with Mr. Eidus, the severity of this relationship between humans and declining ginseng became clear; American ginseng is in trouble in the state of North Carolina.

Eidus began the conversion by talking about how the current ginseng market prices are run by Chinese growers, who have more interest in profit than species preservation. This leads to corrupt and exploitable policies in the market: one being that ginseng needs to be just 5 years old to harvest.

“The legal age of ginseng to harvest is 5 years, which helps the Chinese because they can get more ginseng at a faster rate. However, West Virginia study shows the full complement of ginsenosides are not fully produced until year 7 which means that these plants need more time to grow before harvesting for the full medicinal benefit.”

It is this type of misinformation and greed that leads to the ignorant poaching of this marvelous plant. In 2014, the History Channel released a reality TV show called “Appalachian Outlaws” that highlighted a group of ginseng diggers in the eastern US and influenced many citizens to go into the woods to harvest some of their own ginseng for personal profit. However, these people were not following laws and protocols that the government has set out on ginseng harvest. Eidus claims that “[‘Appalachian Outlaws’] ripped more ginseng out of the ground than any other single event in history.” The problem of poaching did not stop after the show ended, but, even today, the majority of wild ginseng is dug out of the ground by poachers who just want a little cash.

This problem can be stopped if policy makers knew more about the plant that they are trying to protect. Eidus claims that they sit up in their office in the Triangle and do not go out into the field which leaves them using “twisted logic” in their decision making with regards to regulating ginseng harvest.They can see the fact that the ginseng production is decreasing but fail to see why their policies are not working. Eidus has talked with the North Carolina Plant Conservation and pushed for a license requirement, similar to the licensing process for hunting and fishing, to harvest ginseng but they simply won’t listen to him or to anyone who is actually in the field seeing the effects of poachers.

“They have created more problems than helped since the CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) treaty was signed in 1977.”

Eidus argues that policy on ginseng digging has to change but before policy can change, the general public and newcomer ginseng diggers have to change their outlook on this species of life. Because this is a small plant, and not a big mammal such as a deer or bear, ginseng doesn’t seem to be at the top of the list of concerns in America. However, this is not fair to the plant. Humans, all too often, view themselves as a higher being that is greater than the rest of the life on this planet. We use and destroy so many species for our own benefit, but those plants and animals have the right to live just as we do. Creating a mindset of respect for the plant is something that is important when sustainably collecting it for medicinal use. Ginseng owes us nothing, but yet it is giving us these medical properties and we must use what we are given in a sustainable fashion without harming the species as a whole.

When asked if he had any hope for this species in North Carolina, Robert Eidus responded with a hasty “no.” But he then went on to say that if there is rapid change in the near future then there is a slight chance to turn the wild ginseng populations around. It starts with education of the public and policy makers to realize what is actually happening to this plant and what it takes to replenish it.

“What has worked in the past is obviously not the solution.”

This article is meant to act as a message to the policy makers in North Carolina as well as to anybody who is looking into collecting ginseng themselves. We must come together as a community, educate ourselves with facts, and respect this plant as the magnificent form of life that it is. As Robert Eidus told me, we must all “WAKE UP!” and protect this species from wild extinction.

As for myself, I have hope for the future of this species as I believe humans are capable of helping a species just as easily as they can hurt one.

If you want to help, you can join the NC Ginseng Association on Facebook or get involved with local plant conferences to help spread awareness of the need for policy change.

Sources:

• History, Conservation, and Cultivation of American Ginseng, North America’s Most Famous Medicinal Plant (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-44930-8_6)
• In Defense of Plants Podcast: American Ginseng Revisited (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-381-american-ginseng-revisited/id1245995247?i=1000575276926)
• What is CITES? (https://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php)
• Appalachian Outlaws (https://www.history.com/shows/appalachian-outlaws)

We have a rich botanical legacy and how we choose to steward our forests now will have a tremendous impact as we look to the future.

Watch the six videos from the Ginseng Symposium held in Watertown, West Virginia in July of 2017.

Robert Eidus addressed the North Carolina Plant Conservation Board about banning the export of wild ginseng from North Carolina, and licensing and educating harvesters.

January 11, 2022, Chapel Hill Arboretum, Chapel Hill, NC

Good afternoon, my name is Robert Eidus. I have been a North Carolina Ginseng Dealer, and have a North Carolina nursery license, continuously since 1994. I believe I have a unique perspective on American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius), which, in my opinion, is in big trouble because of not only habitat loss and over harvesting, but uneducated out-of-season harvesting which has brought the poundage on a downward spiral.

It is my intention to show the Board and Scientific Committee that this is a man-made crisis and one that can be reversed to bring back the populations of this unique and rare plant.

Resource exploitation is not new to this planet and is one of the reasons the world got together in the late 1970s to pass the CITES treaty, with this plant on the first list of species that needed help. It is my reading of the treaty that those countries signing would put in rules and regulations that would maintain the plant’s numbers, and likewise protect its habitat. To date there is only the record of plants exported.

It would seem, from the raw numbers of pounds exported, that American ginseng’s plant numbers and habitat are troublesome. Two problems are the lack of a program to reseed or replant ginseng, and a new procedure to identify and educate the harvesters.

American ginseng has been exported to China since the 1780’s with an average of 315,000 pounds each year, or approximately 12,600,000 plants dug each year (with a pound consisting of 400 10year old plants). This is about 300 plus years or 4 trillion plants harvested, to throw out a number. We as humans can not keep taking this plant and not putting it back without dire consequences. It should be noted that before Europeans started exporting this plant it was considered a forest weed. It is not that the US government in the recent past has not given away seedlings to the public and nurseries over the years.

Is there any precedent about suspending the selling and export of wild ginseng across state lines? Since the mid 1990s, both Michigan and Maine have had a ban on exporting wild ginseng from their states.

There is also precedent when China and the US were not on the best of terms and American ginseng was banned from going to China. This could be (1) a political decision, like being on opposite sides in a war, to (2) economic decisions, especially the recent last round of tariffs in the past administration, or (3) during the Civil War when all exports stayed or were stored in the US.

So, states have banned the export of wild American ginseng across their state lines and the US has had periods in the past when export was stopped to China. The point is, whenever the export trade was halted or cut back it allowed the plant to come back in numbers and increased sustainable habitat, even if this was a collateral response.

Therefore, in my opinion, for conservation purposes, a temporary export ban could help the wild species return, as well as creating a new opportunity for NC ginseng forest farmers and nurseries to grow this crop in an organic wild-stimulated forest farming way for North Carolina residents, and an out-of-state attraction for the tourist industry.

However, if a temporary state ban is in effect for wild pouched ginseng, there is still a problem in the system that I believe needs fixing. Education of harvesters and the detrimental consequences to conservation must become forefront to NCDA. When the Covid virus was with us in 2020, I had two visits that year from young unemployed men both in early September. Both had large boxes with hundreds of ginseng roots. There was no way they could have harvested in season. On top of that, they did not know how to clean or dry the roots, so the roots started to mold out. There were hundreds of roots in each and the majority were under 5 years old or washed incorrectly. I obviously would not buy them and believe they were sent to the landfill.

In 2008, the Plant Division staff recommended to the Board (under Cecil Frost) to create a $10 Harvesting fee. This part of the meeting was never brought up or discussed. If there is a harvesting fee, then NCDA education can happen before the harvesters begin poaching out-of-season and not getting the education needed. Right now, education occurs mainly when they bring their roots to the dealer after it is too late. A ginseng harvesting fee has been established in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Maryland. It has been the USFWS’s suggestion to initiate a harvesting fee since 2008.

But the real reason for me to be allowed to talk about a state export ban and licensing of the harvesters, was the ban on harvesting in the National Forests in NC this year. The ban was reinforced in other states recently to include TN, KY, and GA, with VA in its 5 or 6th year, and Arkansas Ozark Forest since the 1990’s. I have been directed to, and recommended a Forest Service report by forest economist Frey Gregory in 2018. Thus the assessment by Gary Kauffman, in my opinion, was a wake-up call for the American ginseng plant in NC, which joined the harvest ban in other Southern Appalachian Mountain state’s National Forests.

In summary, creating a temporary export ban on wild American ginseng in NC will allow for the slow rise in plant species survival. Additional humans can help by allowing for the stratification of the ginseng seed. If a plant drops a seed there is 1% chance for germination. If we want to help this germination rate, good harvesters plant the red berries around 2 cm deep, plus a foot and a half from the plant. If this is done, there will be a 16% germination rate. However, if humans stratify the seed from fall to fall, the germination rate goes up to 90 plus %.

Creating a license for the harvesters is one of the best and easiest ways to conserve this plant. And, like the Forest Service limiting the number of pounds harvested for the season, should help with some of the out-of-season harvesting.

As a dealer, when someone has over ten pounds (approximately 4,000 plants) and swears it was off his own land, you know this is a questionable sale. They usually say the dig was legal, but when they then bring you 10 or more dried pounds right after the 15th of September and swear it was all in season, as a dealer you know they are lying. When you ask how they dried it, they will say air dried, but there is no way that can happen by mid September.

Most Ginseng Dealers will not publicly admit to participation in America’s last legally sanctioned illegal activity, the poaching of American ginseng, (which has been estimated at 85% of the wild crop). And, who is the main beneficiary? The Hong Kong Chinese, whose business model is to have their American harvesters poaching (approximately 95% of the yearly export documented) of America’s most important herb.

As one dealer stated to me, “By removing the existing trade from our forest to China, we would also help with the opioid and crack cocaine crisis.” Many harvesters are poaching to pay for illegal drugs. With harvester licensing and education, this could remove the stealing mentality from this industry and will go a long way for conservation of this plant.

Conducted by a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture’s SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education) Program. Co-sponsored by Dr. Jeanine Davis of NCSU Extension Service. September 2002, Eagle Feather Organic Farm

The Problem

Chemical fungicides have been sprayed on ginseng for decades. The growing and harvesting of ginseng is very labor intensive. Thus, once chemical spraying was made available and shown to be effective, ginseng growers quickly adopted the use of agricultural chemicals. Therefore, the chemical spraying reduced labor costs and as a result, increased profits. The use of chemical fungicides has altered the types of ginseng available in the world market.

Traditionally, ginseng was wildcrafted (collected) from wild populations in the woods. Now almost all or the ginseng sold worldwide is cultivated. Ginseng is reputed to be the second most heavily sprayed crop worldwide, next to cotton, (but we do not eat cotton).

Major areas of production include the Orient, Canada and the USA, with Wisconsin being the major state in production. In North America there are 4 main types of ginseng: wild, wild simulated, woodsgrown and cultivated under artificial shade. Both woodsgrown and cultivated are grown in a monoculture system and are usually sprayed with at least a fungicide in the spring, (Diathane M-45 is commonly used by many growers).

Ginseng can become stressed and diseased in a mono-cultured environment. The goal of high -volume growers is to produce a marketable crop as quickly as possible. Therefore, the plants are spaced very close together and are pushed with fertilizers to speed the process. These agricultural practices however, promote the development of diseases that are able to destroy the plant and root. Thus, the grower under that agricultural system is forced to use chemicals to prevent or stop the spread of disease(s).

The mono-cultured farming approach, with the heavy use of Agri-chemicals, makes changes in the end product. In the long term, this is not a sustainable practice. In a short time, the soil can be depleted of nutrients and will be infested with diseases for years to come without intervention. Many plant species, including ginseng, may not be able to live in this polluted soil. Fungicide residues are making cultivated ginseng less desirable in the world market place. As a side effect, this heavy agricultural chemical spraying may also be affecting the drinking water in the area, along with other agricultural spraying of non-biodegradable elements.

The Site and Planting

We began with the preparation of the wooded site. On the north facing slope a ten foot high deer fence was constructed. Live trees were lashed with dead locust logs and then fencing was nailed to the dead wood. This was necessary since deer tracks had been found in the original beds.

Thirty beds in three rows were constructed. Each plot was 2.5 ft. by 3 ft. with a 3 ft by 3 ft. over-spray area between plots. All plant material was removed from the plots and a woodland soil mixture was spread over the beds.

The soil mixture consisted of 3/4 pine bark mulched COMPOST (fungal) and 1/4 worm castings, horse manure and veggie compost (bacterial). The planting occurred when the moon was in Scorpio on October 9th , a good transplanting day according to one time honored planting system. Dr. Jeanine Davis, the Project Cooperator, participated in the planting with two other people from the NCSU Agricultural Extension Service Research Station in Fletcher, NC. Nine hundred plants out of 1000 roots ordered were actually used. Each plot had thirty roots planted in five rows with six plants to a row. The spacing was approximately 6 inches between plants and 9 inches between rows.

Spraying Of Natural Fungicides

In early April the heavy leaf mulch was removed. Some plants were replanted and some were lost. A plant count was taken later in April and 674 plants had survived the winter and were sprayed with either (1) goldenseal, (2) horsetail, (3) Oxidate, (4) micronized compost tea or (5) water (as a control). This is a triple blind study and the ground was prepared with goldenseal or water drench.

Each application was scheduled to be sprayed on a weekly cycle. It should be mentioned for historical importance, that the weather was considered to be in drought conditions for the entire study.

Findings Of The Study

Dr. Jeanine Davis and her staff, headed by George Cox, prepared the final report. Initial indications were that approximately half of the spring time count survived the hot, drought-ridden summer. The control plants appeared to be the first to die off, which was anticipated. Goldenseal spray may not be as effective as the other three sprayed plots of horsetail, micronized compost tea and Oxidate.

Eagle Feather Farm uses goldenseal washes for the soil fungus, and horsetail hand sprayed on the parts of the plant that show yellowing around the edges of the leaves.

North Carolina Ginseng & Goldenseal Company, a former state licensed Ginseng Dealer, was formed in 1993 and is located in Madison County.

Our company has active re-seeding programs for Ginseng and Goldenseal, both “companion” plants often found in the same growing area. We buy and sell Ginseng and Goldenseal. We also teach others how to grow these plants and how to obtain the proper state permits.

North Carolina Ginseng & Goldenseal Company is dedicated to the preservation and propagation of Ginseng and Goldenseal in our natural environment.

Opportunities for Growing

• Do you have land with a North-facing slope?
• Want to Harvest On Your Own Private Land?
• Want to Help Replenish Protected Plant Species?
• Want Extra Income?
• Our Program For Small Farms can get you started.
• Are you looking for an alternative crop to tobacco? See news article >>

Characteristics of Ginseng

American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolium L), has a fleshy root and short stem. It is a perennial. Stem and leaves die in winter but regrow in spring. It is a shade requiring plant, native to hardwood forests, and best adapted to cool, temperate climates. It grows naturally in the western mountains and foothills of North Carolina. Ginseng that grows locally in Madison County has the reputation for being some of the highest quality and potency in the world (see Madison news article). American ginseng root has been exported to the Orient since the early 18th century.

Three Steps to Successful Growing

If interested in growing and harvesting Ginseng or Goldenseal on your land, we can help.

Step 1 – Look at the Growing Site

A Site Visit by one of our company’s representatives may be required to determine if the proper conditions exist for successful growing.

A Site Visit may NOT be necessary if you have determined for yourself the following condition exist at your intended growth area:

1) a well drained North Slope, not in a pasture.

2) a tall, dense deciduous canopy of poplar, beech, maple, dogwood, or oak.

3) the presence of companion plants such as black cohosh, maiden hair fern, jack-in-the-pulpit, trillium, blood root, and false solomonseal, etc.

If unable to determine for yourself that proper conditions exist at the growing site, one of our representatives can conduct a Site Visit, which takes about an hour. This includes a presentation about Ginseng and other medicinal herbs.

Step 2 – Purchase Roots, Seeds or Rhizomes

After determining that you have a proper growing area, our company can provide you with roots, seeds or rhizomes. Visit our online store for more information.

Roots or seeds must be planted in the fall, prior to the first freeze. Ginseng roots can be harvested after 7 years. Goldenseal is harvested after 5 years. The growing site should be monitored at least once per year to check the progress of your crops.

Step 3 – Harvest and Prosper

After your plants have reached maturity, the North Carolina Ginseng & Goldenseal Company will purchase all mature ginseng roots after September 1, when prices for each season are quoted. This is when your farm begins to generate income. At the end of November we will purchase dried or shade dried ginseng roots which have been properly cleaned. Fresh Goldenseal roots are purchased in both the spring and fall.

After harvest, our company will take the “green” roots, individually wash them and air dry them under controlled conditions. When dried, these individual plants are processed for tinctures, capsules, or prized root.

Visit our Services page to schedule a site visit. For more information, call (828) 649-3536 or email eidusbiz@gmail.com.

Goldenseal and Ginseng Together

Dr. Jeanine Davis of the North Carolina Extension Agency recommends that Goldenseal be used as a rotation crop with Ginseng. Because these two are often companion plants in the wild, we also recommend planting both at the same time. We also will help you obtain a Permit for Propagation per North Carolina law, if the grower requests this permit.

Checking Soil Requirements

Ginseng, Goldenseal and other medicinal plants require a well-drained soil, which means a steep to moderate slope. Too much standing water will generate diseases and cause the roots to rot. Creating terraces by taking downed lumber and putting it on the up-hill side will create a flatter area to plant but will not cause the water to stand. These terraces are desirable for keeping the newly created soil from eroding.

One of the most important elements for good ginseng and goldenseal growth is the soil. Soil testing is essential. I consider myself a convert of Dr. Elaine Ingham from Oregon State University, author of the Soil Foods Web concept (www.soilfoodweb.com).

To simplify here, soil mixture required for growing healthy plants in the woods and soil mixture for growing in the sun are different. The two elements of the soil mixture needed are fungi and bacteria.

For growing in wooded areas you will need to make a soil amendment that provides a ratio of 75% composted pine bark mulch, and 25% composted bacteria (which can be horse, chicken, turkey manure, veggie compost or worm castings).

For growing medicinal plants in sunny gardens, the soil mixture needs to be the reverse, i.e. 25% fungi and 75% bacteria composted materials. This will give you a dark, moist medium in which to plant the seeds or roots.

The Ginseng Fungicide Connection

The Problem: When Ginseng is Grown in a Monoculture, it Attracts a Fungus.

How did we come to cultivate ginseng in a monoculture enviroment?

One hears the theory that China cut most of her trees to feed her people 400 years ago, therefore eliminating most organic wild Asian ginseng.

This is what Sarah Harriman says, in her book, The Book of Ginseng: “Because the scant wild population of ginseng comes nowhere meeting the demand for its roots in any one year, ginseng has long been cultivated in China, Korea and Japan”.

In the Orient, Ginseng was grown for centuries on plantations usually under the control of the government and then sold by a government trade monopoly. Soldiers were commonly used as harvesters. Control and security produced the environment for growing ginseng, which needs to faithfully reproduce its natural habitat.

Cultivated ginseng has been grown in Asia for the last 400 years. It has been cultivated in America since the early turn of the century, mostly in Wisconsin.

Sarah Harriman, states, “The plant has never been common, thriving only in small patches in deep woodlands where very specific cultural demands are naturally provided…. The little root…. flourishes only in woods earth, protected from wind, rain and sun by the forest roof of leafy boughs.”

How was ginseng farmed before chemical fungicide spraying in the 1920’s?

Sarah Harriman, describes a late nineteenth century Korean ginseng farm, within walls and armed watch towers as follows: “Each farm is a rectangular compound…Beyond the buildings are parallel rows of low, dark mat sheds with roofs sloping downward toward the south or southwest.”

The writer of the diary goes on to explain how the plants survived with human help. “Once in each three days interval during it’s whole life the plant is watered, and the bed. carefully inspected to prevent crowding, decay, and the ravages of works and insects”.

The writer then explains that the ginseng beds were changed each year by bringing down new earth from the mountains. “The most successful plantations use woods earth hauled to the farm”.

Each of the early years, the plants are transplanted in the spring, where they are pushed further apart. The diary goes on: “In this second bed the plants remain one year, and are then transplanted to the third bed, and planted still further apart.”

Medicinally, ginseng is said to need seven (7) years to reach maturity, as the book says. “Generally speaking, seven years are required from the time of planting until the plant is medicinally mature”.

So, as Sara comments, it is very labor-intensive operation. “The typical ginseng farm employs and houses a large number of peasant workers to give constant care to the plants”.

Some of these practices came to America when the Fromm brothers successfully transplanted 100 roots from forest to garden in 1904. By 1915 the Fromm brothers were cultivating 15 acres in fields under shade structures, usually lathe. Thus, the American cultivated ginseng farming practices started in Wausau County, Wisconsin, have made it famous as a ginseng Mecca.

As the publication on Wisconsin stated in the fall of 1993: “Today Wisconsin’s 3000 acres of artificially shaded, raised-bed ginseng gardens produce 1.3 to 1.5 million pounds of roots annually….yeilding between $50 million and $70 million each year. And, although Wisconsin leads the pack in ginseng production, biological barriers still complicate the root’s cultivation…. Disease especially fungal diseases can easily wipe out a crop that requires three to four years to reach maturity and an average investment of $30,000 an acre…Ginseng is very susceptible to these diseases and because of that, ginseng growers traditionally have had to use a lot of fungicides”.

The start of the chemical revolution in the 1920’s led to products like Dow Chemicals DDT being used by ginseng farmers both in field and woods grown ginseng. Although, the fungicide has changed the fungal diseases remains about the same.

The pamphlet Ginseng: A Production Guide for North Carolina, comments: “At least a dozen pathogenic diseases (fungus organisms that attack ginseng) have been identified, but only a few have been observed in North Carolina. Alternaria blight is the most serious and widespread fungus disease”.

As W. Scott Persons states in his ‘bible’ American Ginseng Green Gold:

“When a wild plant is domesticated and cultivated in a monoculture (only members of its own kind). Often there is a increase in its susceptibility to disease. Wild ‘sang diggers’ rarely find a diseased plant, and wild simulated gardens suffer less from blights and rots than do plantings under artificial shade. If conditions are suitable, the woods grower may have to deal with one or more of three basic disease types, damping-off, blight and root rot, each of which can be caused by more than one fungus (or) one fungus can cause all three.”

“Damping-off is a fungal disease of young plants that causes them to wilt and fall over within a few days of infection. This usually occurs early in the growing season when the weather is cold and wet. Blight, Alternaria blight is the most common, is spread by spores (small seed-like bodies). These usually travel on the wind, in splashing rain, or on clothing and alight most likely on a leaf surface. The spores remain on the surface until hot, wet weather, then “sprout” and penetrate the leaf cells.”

“Root rot is the least common and infects the leaves of the plant first, where the foliage starts to droop and/or turn reddish, yellow or bronze in spots all over. In addition to Alternaria, at least five other fungal organisms have been associated with root rot, Phytophora being the most common.”

As Scott mentions one of the best ways to protect against disease is to have healthy plants in healthyappropriate soil conditions. A site with excellent drainage and good air circulation is a must. And as the Production Guide states:

“Avoiding crowding: a very dense plantings are conductive to spread of diseases….give each plant enough space for good air movement and little contact with other plants”.

So, we can see the current American industry standard for cultivated ginseng is to spray the hell out of the root. Some operations areso fe losing the crop that they spray daily from April to September.

Now the root does not say that it will not absorb the fungicide into its system. In fact, ginseng seems to draw most minerals and trace elements from the ground it is grown in, so that it is impossible for heavily sprayed beds t not have a high level of fungicide residue.

Therefore, the task at hand is to find a natural alternate to heavy chemical toxic fungal sprays. The first clue is the research that Dr. Jeanine Davis has done in the Asheville area. In her document, Advances in Goldenseal Cultivation she states; “Goldenseal shows some promise as a rotational crop for ginseng. It is difficult, in many cases impossible, to grow ginseng in the same location twice. Growers’ experience and preliminary research indicates that goldenseal thrives where ginseng has been grown previously, even where ginseng diseases such as leaf blight and root rot were present”.

How can that be? Well goldenseal is a natural herbal fungicide. Isn’t that interesting. It is not suprising that Chief Netz of the Lumbee Nation commented that his tribe considers ginseng and goldenseal to be brother and sister. Growing in the same conditions and helping each other as plants. So, goldenseal can clean the soil for the ginseng plants.

I also had an experience with Bio-Dynamic farming and learned from Hugh Lovell from Georgia, that one of the preps that Steiner had made in 1928 was a horsetail tea. Horsetail is also a natural, anti-fungal herb and has the highest count of silicone of any plant.

He suggested spraying horsetail in the spring and making a goldenseal tea and spraying that in the fall. This research lead to the 2001 Sierra Grant. See Ginseng Production Utilizing Natural Fungicides.

For information on Identifying Ginseng, please Click Here

American Ginseng (Panax Quinquefolius) is a fleshy root perennial. Stems and leaves die in winter but regrow in the spring. It is a shade requiring plant, native to north-facing slopes in hardwood forests and best adapted to cool, temperate climates. It grows naturally in the western mountains and foothills of North Carolina. This plant has a short, legal harvest season between September 1 and the first frost.

Organic Wild vs. Chemically Cultivated

The vast majority of ginseng in the world has been sprayed with chemicals, especially fungicides. Some ginseng plants are also sprayed with pesticides and herbicides. There is a sacred relationship between the earth, air, and water allowing ginseng to grow. To grow “wild” the plants are traditionally found in hardwood forests under a canopy of tall dense deciduous trees. Usually the slope is facing North, rich in humus soil, and surrounded by companion plants.

Since ginseng is a root, it absorbs the natural minerals from the soil. Research has indicated that it may not be possible to regrow a root in the same exact spot for many years, since it depletes the soil. New research into natural herbal fungicides is being conducted at Eagle Feather Farm.

The ginseng that is cultivated can be farmed in raised beds, like in Wisconsin, or in “woodsgrown” beds, like in the mountain and foothill forests of the East Coast of America. What occurs when large numbers of ginseng plants are grown in close proximity is that a fungus appears, every time.

As the fungus moves in the beds it creates a circle and in a short period of time destroys the entire bed. A typical bed can have thousands of plants and be worth tens of thousands of dollars.

As far as we know the only way to eliminate the fungus is to spray the plants. The fungicide, pesticide or herbicide is then absorbed into the root. It is not known if the chemicals are toxic.

The two types of ginseng are different in the following ways: the wild organic root is knarled, ringed with wrinkles, small, light weight and has a bitter woodsy taste. The cultivated root is larger, heavier, smoother, tastes sweeter and smells different. The 1994 price on the world market for dried roots were ninety (90) percent more for the wild organic roots.

Studies in 1986 show that 94% of the organic wild American Ginseng is purchased by the Chinese in the Pacific Rim. The Orient, mostly from Hong Kong, sells the most chemicalized ginseng back to us for American consumption. This not to say that fungicided ginseng does not have ginsenicides, it does. However it would also include chemicals with possible toxin build up in the body which most people would not want to ingest. Unfortunately, the ginseng industry does not tell you the negative effects of its products.

Growing Ginseng

• Please see our page on growing ginseng and goldenseal.
• Soil mixture requirements

Harvesting Ginseng

• “Dig” only AFTER the plant’s red berries (seeds) have dropped or were harvested, in the legal season.
• Harvest in the Native American tradition with prayers and rituals including “smudging” and tobacco offerings.
• Never strip a digging area or harvest the first plants.
• Leave smaller plants for the “seventh generation” by harvesting only roots that are over seven years old, with most plants being between ten and twenty-five years old.
• After harvesting, the “green” roots are carefully washed and air dried under controlled shade conditions. The process of drying takes over one month. Do not quickly dry the roots using a dehydrator, heat, or sun drying as this could affect the potency and will make the roots brittle. After the roots are dried, the individual roots are packaged or they are processed for tinctures, capsules or powder.

Download a Good Stewardship Harvest Brochure for Wild American Ginseng (click on your state). The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) has produced a series of brochures to encourage good stewardship practices by those who harvest wild American ginseng roots.

For Ginseng Export Requirements, Click Here

The Ginseng Harvest In Madison County >> (newspaper article)

Fish and Wildlife Service Announces 5-Year Age Limit on Ginseng Exports

In 2006 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it would permit the export of wild and wild-simulated American ginseng that is at least 5 years old.

Agency representatives said the decision was reached after consideration of recent research findings as well as feedback received from dozens of growers, harvesters, and other industry representatives during public meetings held earlier this year. After considering the new information, the agency has determined that lowering the age would not adversely affect the conservation and long-term survival of the plant.

This change in export requirements for wild and wild-simulated ginseng will not affect half a million pounds of cultivated ginseng root that is exported each year, primarily to Asia. Cultivated roots are not subject to the age restriction. However, all exports, including cultivated roots, must be accompanied by a permit issued by the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Ginseng is an herbaceous perennial found in the understory of mixed hardwood forests of the northeastern, midwestern and southeastern United States and in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It has a life expectancy of at least 60 years, and proponents believe the plant enhances physical and mental activity, increases stamina and vitality, builds resistance to stress and promotes a healthy libido.

Wild and wild-simulated ginseng is exported from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

In 1975, because of the high demand for wild ginseng root, American ginseng was listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a treaty to which the United States and 168 other countries are signatories. An Appendix-II listing means that export permits must be issued by the country of origin stating that a particular shipment for export was legally collected and that the export is not harmful to the survival of that species in the wild. The Service began approving export of ginseng on a state-by-state basis in 1978.

Agency representatives said the Service will continue to work closely with growers, the States and with ginseng industry representatives to encourage continued monitoring of ginseng in the wild as well as assessments of the plant’s populations.

The export requirements could be modified in future years if new information is found.

The Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 81 ecological services field stations.

The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.

For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, visit our home page at http://www.fws.gov