TOPIC: any value/ buyers of seng tops here??

In ia we must bring all tops out with us are these worth saving/ does anyone buy them??

IowaGrown wrote:

In ia we must bring all tops out with us are these worth saving/ does anyone buy them??

I have sold them to Herbal Stores in the past but have not done so in over 10 years! You might try some Herbal Stores nearby or even advertise on Craigslist. Someone (that doesn't know the laws) might try to give you some grief over them but just tell them that they were legally dug and that the Ginseng tops aren't regulated as the roots are. Since Ginseng tops do not weigh much but contain more ginsenosides than the roots, so don't get ripped off. Sell them by the top not by the pound. I brought out some tops yesterday, put them in water overnight, then will keep them green in the crisper drawer of the fridge for a few days. If I find no interest in them, I will dry them and keep for my own use.

If anyone on Wildgrown sells their' Ginseng tops every year and has an idea as to what they should bring, please post this information for the O.P., for myself and for others that may be interested in doing the same.


Frank

Thanks frank. I've already got probably 400 sitting at my dads in the fridge from the weekend. How do you consume these when fresh or dried?

IowaGrown wrote:

Thanks frank. I've already got probably 400 sitting at my dads in the fridge from the weekend. How do you consume these when fresh or dried?

You can chew on these green or dried and get the benefit of the medicinal properties they contain. Also, once dried, you can grind them up and make Ginseng Tea with them or add them to food dishes. A lot of folks add some to their coffee or other drinks but when I do, I use a coffee filter like a tea bag and let it steep in the coffee for awhile, then remove it and drink the coffee. I am sure that others will chime in with other ways to use the tops and stems. I actually made some tea last night from a Ginseng top that had some yellowing from being knocked down by a limb. I put the leaves in whole, cut up 1/2 inch sections of the stem, then split them down the middle and placed them in a pot of water to boil. After boiling for about 10 minutes, I strained the contents in a drinking glass, added a Chamomile tea bag and sugar and let it steep for about 5 minutes before drinking. I was hurting all over from the 6 hours of digging and scouting I had done and what a difference the tea made after about 30 minutes!


Frank

I'm currently working on a market for the tops. I know there is a market, but nothing solid as to price and I've been less than happy with the people involved I've dealt with previously. I have high hopes for this new channel, however, and will let you all know if it pans out.


If you bring them out anyway, go ahead and dry them, and store them in a clean dry cardboard box. I've kept tops that way for years with no detrimental effect.

Who knows, later this year or next I might have a market and that box of dry tops might be worth something.

By tops do y'all mean whole plant stem and all or just the leaves? What about the crowns?

IowaGrown wrote:

By tops do y'all mean whole plant stem and all or just the leaves? What about the crowns?

Everything above the bud is usable and sellable! However, most diggers cut or break the stems just above the crown and leave them intact on the root.


Frank

Thanks again frank. Sorry if I sound naive. Been growing and harvesting wild with my dad for fifteen years now (since I was 8) and haven't learned much more than how to manage harvest and sell it haha

YOu would really want to leave the growth ring intact, like Hunstman 53 said. This is to allow the immature plant to continue to grow. If you have harvested the entire plant... not mto worry about that.

Are you in western Iowa or eastern?

More central. Why might you ask?