TOPIC: Connecticut sang hunting

It seems to me I might have quite alot of it in my woods. I would like to be able to harvest it, if it IS sang. I'll have to wait I guess until fall to see about the berries.

Any good pictures of similar plants? What I see is pretty much exactly what has been shown in the pics, however some of it climbs trees and I suspect is virginia creeper.

The stuff I think I am finding is damp woods, near the ferns, north side of trees and rocks. I have not dug up a root, apparently you have to dig down past the horizontal root just below the surface. Sometimes this goes on for quite a while. I don't want to do much digging until fall, and also wonder what the connecticut laws are about ginseng hunting, if any.

Does anyone hunt in Connecticut, and if so, what are your experiences?

Thanks

If what you have found is vining and climbing trees, then it is not ginseng. Ginseng does not vine. It will have one green stem that comes up from the ground, then it will branch out from the same point into 2,3,4 or more \"prongs\". Most generally mature plants will have 3 or 4 prongs. The berry stem will grow straight up from where the prongs branch out. From what you have described above, I believe you may be correct with your assesment of virgina creeper. While they do look quite similar the ginseng will tend to have 3 larger leaflets pointing one direction and 2 smaller leaflets pointing back the other direction. Hope this is somewhat helpful.

Here is a pic that might help you out some.

Typical forest floor in a area that might have ginseng growing.

There are a few 3 prong Ginseng plants visable various sizes, one 2 prong and a few seedlings (3 leafers).

There is also quite a bit of virginia creaper (fairly easy to confuse with seng when you are first starting out) and some poison ivy and lots of other forest plants going on here...

Study the pic and see if you can spot the ginseng.

TNhunter

As 5prong mentioned, ginseng grows up from a single stalk or stem, that goes up and (in mature plants) will fork off in 2, 3, or 4 prongs (depending on maturity, health, etc).

Sometimes (rare) will have 5 or 6 prongs - but 3 prongs and 4 prongs are most common for healthy mature plants.

Where it forks off to the different prongs, it will have a flower spike (early spring) and the flowers turn into berries, green at first then turning red (starting about now).

Each prong will have (usually) 5 leaves on it, sometimes less, sometimes more (rare) - but most of the time each prong will have a cluster of 5 leaves on it.

Including 3 larger leaves that point out/away from the center, and 2 smaller leaves that point back towards the center.

That pattern (large leaves pointing out, small leaves pointing in) is what sets ginseng off. You have to be able to SPOT that pattern when scanning a area to distinguish it from something like Virginia Creeper.

Now take a look at this pic - same picture as above but with Seng plants identified.

TNhunter

Here is a pic of a seed producing bed I established last fall.

Several nice mature 4 and 3 prong plants in there.

You can see that leaf pattern I mentioned if you study them. Big leaves pointing out, small leaves pointing in. Flower Spike / Berry Stem in the center where they fork off.

TNhunter

Here is a pic that shows a 3 prong (not a real big mature plant) just a decent sized 3 prong.

This view is from the below the leaves.

You can see where the main stalk forks off 3 ways and the flower spike (with berries) in the middle.

Our local ginseng, it is common for the berries to be just below the height of the leaves. On some real nice mature plants the berry stem will be longer and the berries will be up above the leaves.

Here is a example of a berry stem on a nice 4 prong and the berries are 3-4\" above the leaves.



Good Luck finding seng on your place.

If you will get out there and look around and take a few pics and post em back here no doubt the guys here can ID (most if not all) of what you are finding in the woods.

TNhunter

You might also check out the two youtube channels below.

Lots of vids available on wild ginseng hunting showing plants up close, proper digging, replanting of berries, and on my channel there are some on planting wild-simulated ginseng.

Billy's channel (ginsenghunter1) has some really nice BIG KY Mountain ginseng vids on it.

I would not harvest any roots until you check out your State laws. In some north eastern States (Main for example) it is illegal to harvest wild ginseng - but you can grow wild-simulated or cultivated if you wish. We have one person that post regular here \"Classicfur\" that is from Main.

TNhunter

www.youtube.com/yttnhunter

www.youtube.com/ginsenghunter1

TNhunter wrote:

Here is a example of a berry stem on a nice 4 prong and the berries are 3-4\" above the leaves.

Good Luck finding seng on your place.

If you will get out there and look around and take a few pics and post em back here no doubt the guys here can ID (most if not all) of what you are finding in the woods.

TNhunter

Tn...Is this one of Billys plants?

FTB,

Yes it is.

All 5 of the roots I got from Billy (KY Mountain roots) have nice long berry stems on them (berry pods up above the leaves).

It is unusual for us to find a seng top with berry stems that long on our local seng, even if nice old mature healthy plant.

TNhunter