Intro music: Beautiful Medicine chant

Plants & Their Friends with Robert Eidus originally aired on WART 95.5 FM.

Visit www.wartfm.org to learn more.

written by Betty Belanus, April 17, 2019 for Smithsonian Folklife

“One ounce of wild ginseng powder has the value of $150! I thought, ‘If I screw these up, Robert’s going to be so mad at me.’”

Luckily, Jess Larson did not screw them up. At a gathering of the North Carolina Ginseng Association at Warren Wilson College in March, she presented a beautiful tray of glistening dark chocolate ginseng truffles, made with the precious powder donated by association president Robert Eidus. As the group’s secretary and also a skilled confectioner, Larson was charged with incorporating ginseng leaves and roots into tasty treats for the meeting.

The table laden with these delights was understandably the most popular place in the room, which also displayed ginseng roots, ginseng-infused honey, and other products for a silent auction. A diverse range of experts shared their experiences: Caleb Trivett, who began digging ginseng with his family as a child; John Kim, a Korean American ginseng trader who is attempting to open new markets for fresh ginseng in Los Angeles; and Iris Gao, a scientist from Middle Tennessee University whose cutting-edge research should help speed up ginseng growth and determine new medical uses of both the roots and leaves.

Compared to the panel speakers, Larson admitted that she is a mere ginseng novice. She grows a variety of other herbs, and now she is trying her hand at ginseng in the shady woods at her home in Hickory, North Carolina. She likes to experiment with recipes including teas and tinctures, and now that she has tackled ginseng sweets, she wants to try her hand at ginseng-infused liquors and bitters.

Ginseng root powder is believed to increase your energy level and boost your immune system. The taste of ginseng root is described as earthy and slightly sweet by some, and bitter by others. To me, it added an interesting undertone of flavor to Larson’s rich chocolate truffles. And, whether from the root powder, the sugar, the chocolate, or the good company of ginseng enthusiasts, my energy soared all afternoon. Between all the experts and one expert confectioner, their talents and innovative ideas bode well for the future of American ginseng.

Try your hand at ginseng truffles with the recipe kindly shared by Jess Larson. You can purchase American ginseng powder online or at health food stores.

Chocolate Ginseng Truffles

Makes about 14 (adapted from Minimalist Baker)

Ingredients
1 cup raw pecans
1 cup raw walnuts
10 whole medjool dates, pitted (if dried out, soak in warm water for 10 minutes, then drain)
1 tablespoon cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
1 tablespoon ginseng root powder (more or less depending on how much ginseng you want to taste)
1 1/4 cups dairy-free dark chocolate, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon coconut oil

Toppings (optional)
1/4 cup cacao nibs, crushed pecans/walnuts
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Directions

Grind pecans and walnuts in a food processor or high-speed blender until they reach the consistency of a meal. Remove and set aside in a dish.

Grind pitted dates in the food processor until small bits remain and/or it forms into a ball.

Add the cocoa powder, cinnamon, ginseng powder, and half of the nut meal to the dates and pulse. Continue pulsing and adding the nut meal a little at a time until a loose dough is formed. You may not need to use all of the nuts, which is fine because you can use any leftovers for topping the truffles.

Once you have a dough that’s easy to form into balls, scoop out one tablespoon and carefully roll or shape them into balls. (If they aren’t quite forming, hold the dough in your palm and let the heat of your hand warm them, then gently shape into a loose ball.) Set on parchment paper and place in freezer to chill while you prepare the chocolate.

Melt chopped chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave in 30-second increments. Be careful not to overheat. Once melted, remove from heat and stir in coconut oil to help the chocolate thin and ease the dipping process.

Remove the truffles from freezer and, one at a time, dip them into the melted chocolate. Use a fork to remove them and tap away excess chocolate. Transfer back onto parchment paper and top with sea salt, crushed pecans, or cacao nibs before the chocolate hardens.

Let set at room temperature. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature. Transfer to freezer for longer-term storage.

Betty Belanus is a curator and education specialist at the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. She is delving into the history and traditions of American ginseng as the subject of a Smithsonian Folklife Festival program for 2020.

by Robert Eidus,

Hemp oil is fake medicine, the snake oil of the modern era, and it is overwhelming my community of Asheville, NC.

Hemp oil vendors promise a pure product that will have all kinds of healing effects, but this is just the start of the false statements and outright lies associated with this fake medicine. There is no way for consumers to know what is really inside the hemp oil bottle, unless laboratory tests have been performed by a third party and the results have been printed on the product. In addition, hemp oil can contain harmful added substances that can cause harm, such as heavy metals and chemical residues, resulting in headaches and other health problems. Though many people claim to experience healing from CBD oil, there is no evidence that this is due to anything other than the placebo effect. The brain, not the medicine, is doing the healing.

One of the biggest points of confusion is the belief that hemp oil is the same as cannabis oil and can heal in the same way. Nothing could be farther than the truth. Though both hemp and cannabis come from the Cannabis sativa plant, the strains of C. sativa used for hemp oil have been bred for industrial uses, not human consumption. Industrial hemp is a toxic plant that is grown and processed with toxic chemicals to make products like rope, fiber, paper, and building materials. Most importantly, hemp is a bio-accumulator, which means that it draws toxins like heavy metals from the soil which then remain in the plant after it has been harvested. “That’s a great feature for restoring a poisoned ecosystem, but it is not great for making ingestible medicinal concentrates,” says Martin A. Lee in Project CBD: CBD Users Manual.

The second major confusion comes from the push by Big Pharma for single-molecule compounds over whole-plant synergies. This benefits pharmaceutical companies because isolated molecules can be easily patented. Again, this builds on misinformation and lies. Cannabis works through the “entourage effect,” which means that multiple compounds found naturally in the plant—in particular, CBD (cannabidiol) and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol)—work together within the human body to have effects that cannot be achieved by any one of these compounds alone. For a cannabis product to have medicinal effects, there is a minimum threshold of each compound that must be reached. CBD needs THC to be fully activated, so if you buy CBD by itself you are paying for fake medicine.

The third area for confusion is in the way that hemp oil products report the CBD concentration in milliliters. This is a serious mistake for this plant, since numerous factors are necessary to determine how much medicine any cannabis product contains and how much an individual needs to take.It is important to at least (1) have a complete taxonomic report with each product by batch, especially the THC and CBD percentage by dry weight, (2) know the particular cannabis strain and how it relates to your illness, (3) know the appropriate quantity to be ingested by consulting with a health care practitioner, (4) know the method of extraction, as the different types of organic extraction produce different strengths, and (5) know the best time of day to take medicine, for those sensitive to THC. Most importantly, the whole process of growing and extracting the cannabis product needs to be organic if it to be real medicine.

For a more accurate understanding of this complex plant, I recommend checking out Martin A. Lee’s history of Cannabis sativa in the book Smoke Signals (2012). According to Lee, Cannabis sativa was included in the US Pharmacopoeia at the beginning of the 1900, which recognized that the plant had been used for thousands of years for epileptic children. Lee also writes that 90% of the Cannabis sativa around the globe contains THC and CBD in a 1:1 ratio, and medicine for thousands of years was based on this ratio of constituents. It was not until after 1960, when THC was discovered in Israel, and the 1990s, when CBD was discovered in Spain, that plant breeders began to cultivate only female flowers, creating strains that produce much stronger medicine due to much higher levels of either THC or CBD. High-quality cannabis for medicine is grown using pots (indoors) or breathable fabric (outdoors) to control what these bio-accumulator plants ingest.

CBD and THC are both classified by the United States government’s Drug Enforcement Administration as a dangerous Schedule 1 substance and is discussed in the Farm Bill of 2018. However, in 2018, the Food and Drug Administration approved a specific CBD-containing medication, which was then listed under the less-restrictive Schedule 5 by the DEA. Do not be fooled that this is medicine: this fake medicine is a single-molecule compound produced by Big Pharma. Ask for scientific studies.

In 2014, North Carolina passed the Epilepsy Alternative Treatment Act (“Hemp Oil Act”), which allowed for epileptic children who are not responding to conventional treatments to use CBD oil medicinally. Patients must be diagnosed by a doctor at one of four university-affiliated hospitals and the product must be produced in a licensed NC pharmacy with lab testing results attached to each bottle showing that the product contains at least 10% CBD and no more than 0.9% THC. However, CBD oil sold in North Carolina does not display the lab results required by this program. That means that in North Carolina, CBD oil is technically legal, but qualifying products are not actually available. I would also contend that allowing only epileptic children to get Cannabis oil is not sufficient, since there are many other people who have a need for this medicine in North Carolina. Making medicinal cannabis available in North Carolina with laboratory testing will be the only way to get rid of fake medicine in my community.

Finally, we should also pay attention to the many available herbs, supplements, and over-the-counter medications that address the same ailments that people take CBD for, including anxiety, sleeplessness, and minor pain relief. A knowledgeable herbalist or holistic medical practitioner can point people toward other medicines that can heal these problems for a fraction of the cost—and a fraction of the risk—of hemp oil fake medicine.

Millions of Americans take ginseng for its perceived health benefits. …The harvest for wild American ginseng begins this month. It’s also high-season for poaching. That’s leading to a serious problem: the plant’s popularity could lead to its demise.

Nine million people per year visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park along the Tennessee-North Carolina border. No national park is more popular, or more threatened by ginseng poachers.

Ranger Joe Pond showed CBS News the largest protected ginseng habitat in America. Taking it from a national park is illegal. Pond said, “It’s the root that they’re after. You see how dense the forest is, you could dig through here most of the day and it would be hard to detect you were even back in here.”

Stolen roots were recovered by rangers two weeks ago from a pair of suspected thieves.

The roots don’t look like much, but can sell for more than $800 per pound.

Some days the rangers win. In 2010, they arrested Billy Joe Hurley. He pled guilty to poaching 11 pounds of ginseng. But the park spreads across a half million acres and only 30 rangers patrol it. Pond said, “For every one we catch I’d probably say 10 get away. It’s hard to say how many are actively out there.”

But we do know where almost all of it ends up — in China. For centuries ginseng has been prized as a spirit herb. Almost all wild American ginseng gets sold to brokers in Hong Kong. But first, it passes through an American ginseng dealer.

Robert Eidus is one of 32 licensed ginseng dealers in North Carolina. No state produces more it, and almost of it is exported to Hong Kong.

Eidus said he believes 90 percent of the exported ginseng is poached. Eidus says the problem in North Carolina is that harvesters don’t need a license.

CBS News’ Mark Strassmann asked, “Does it trouble you do business with people you suspect are poachers?”

Eidus replied, “Trouble me? Well, yes and no. But the big thing is, if I don’t buy it, then someone down the road, and the next guy, is definitely going to definitely not have a problem with it.”

Wild ginseng can be harvested in 19 states. Conservationists say the plant is at risk in 12 of them. The National Forest Service has cut ginseng harvesting permits by 75 percent, according to NatureServe, a nonprofit conservation organization.

Susan Leopold leads a group called United Plant Savers. Ginseng is on their list of 20 endangered plants. She said, I see ginseng, absolutely, as a national treasure. … The reality is that there are very few resources that are provided towards plant conservation. It’s not saving the panda. It’s not saving the polar bear.”

So will ginseng be around 10 or 20 years from now?

Eidus said it’s not possible, adding, “There’s not enough ginseng out there.”

© 2013 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

“Wild ginseng is far superior to the cultivated American or Chinese product,” exclaimed Robert Eidus. “That’s why the Chinese will buy whatever amount is shipped to them. It contains more ginsenosides, the therapeutic component that promotes overall health and relieves stress.”

Robert is passionate about the unassuming wild American plant. He grows, harvests and sells it but that’s not all. He’s a tireless promoter of ginseng as a high-value cash crop that can benefit impoverished areas in his adopted state of North Carolina. He gives generously of his time to see that Americans have access to products made from the wild native plant (Panax quinquefolius), which is more potent that the cultivated American or Asian variety (Panax ginseng).

He said, “Currently, most of the American ginseng sold in this country comes back to the U.S. from China and the cultivated products contain minimal amounts of the ginsenosides. Asia does not send back wild roots.”

We asked Robert what he meant by “high-value ginseng” and he said that the potency of roots grown in the wild makes it so. In 2012 one pound of wild American roots sold for around $800, compared to about $50 for a pound of cultivated American ginseng. The older the root, the more potent it is. Ginseng’s fragility adds to its value. Each wild plant needs to produce 100 seeds to replace one harvested plant.

Robert’s Roots

Just how did a 69-year old with a Brooklyn accent — an urban planner before moving to North Carolina and going into the real estate business — become a ginseng farmer and advocate?

“I discovered the real estate business wasn’t who I was. There was a big void in my life — a black hole.”

He became ill and credits lifestyle changes and ginseng with helping to restore his health. After attending a ginseng conference, he said, “It sounds whoo-whooish but I had a mental conversation with a ginseng plant, it was looking for someone to represent it.

He picked the brains of people he met at the conference. He talked to Gary Stancisk, a builder who was putting up a house for Robert on land he had bought — 28 acres of hardwood cove paradise, adjacent to the French Broad River in Madison County.

“Gary was growing ginseng on his property,” Robert recalled. “A week after the conference a friend and I took a walk up one of my hillsides and found some growing. We dug up a root, brought it back and I started to learn all there was about it. I didn’t know that it grew wild in North Carolina. Next, I got a ginseng dealer’s license — you have to have one if you want to trade in it. As far as I know I am the only dealer in North Carolina who does not export ginseng to Hong Kong.”

Today his Eagle Feather Farm is also the home of North Carolina Ginseng and Goldenseal Company, which sells seeds, roots, medicinal plants, trees, rhizomes, tinctures and capsules. United Plant Savers has designated the farm a Native Botanic Sanctuary. And Robert is constantly on the go teaching classes about growing medicinal herbs and promoting the ginseng industry in this country.

He was quick to admit that his success with ginseng didn’t happen overnight. “It has taken me 19 years to make a go of it. I started when I was 50 and am now 69. Fortunately, I had rental houses to carry me through. This idea of farming in the woods is finally gaining traction and I am getting better at it. I tell people, if I can grow ginseng, anyone can.”

Farming In The Forest

Robert thinks that forest farming, an aspect of permaculture that harvests wild herbs, plants and trees sustainably, is the best way to grow wild American ginseng. In the wild it grows in shaded woodlands throughout mountainous areas of the Eastern United States and Canada, flourishing on north-facing slopes under a deciduous hardwood canopy. The most potent roots come from plants grown in this environment, although plants can be grown under shade cloth.

Growing Tips

Before forest farming and harvesting ginseng, you need to know three things: It is illegal to harvest any but mature plants, which have three or four prongs, each with five leaflets on it and four buds on the neck of the root; you only harvest a plant when the berries are ripe (red); and always leave some mature plants in a ginseng patch.

The forest farming aspect begins when you start your own patch in the woods on the forest floor. “After harvesting a plant, sow the ripe berries, 1/2 to 1-inch below the soil, 2 centimeters deep, to be exact,” said Robert. “Then, be prepared to wait seven years for a plant to reach full maturity. By law, you can sell roots overseas when they are five years old but they still do not have the full range of medicinal components.”

Good Companions

Ginseng and goldenseal grow in the wild together and Robert duplicates nature in his forest beds. Other than giving the plants a little water when the soil starts to dry out and watching for fungal problems, they require little care. Goldenseal helps with internal mucous activities and is taken short-term. It also alleviates skin and eye disorders and is a good companion plant since it has anti-fungal properties that protect ginseng.

To learn more about forest farming wild ginseng, read Robert Eidus’ booklet, Growing Ginseng, and Growing and Marketing Ginseng, Goldenseal and Other Woodland Medicinals by W. Scott Persons and Jeanine M. Davis. And visit Robert’s informative website, www.ncgoldenseal.com.