TOPIC: A few questions for the experts

I'm finding just a ton of sang lately but, all but 1 plants berries are still green. The plant that had turned only had 1 red berry out of 4. My question is do the turning times seem to vary from plant to plant or is it all pretty much close together? I know region matters but, locally speaking. I found the largest \"mess\" of sang the other day that I've ever saw. Hundreds of plants from the bottom of the ridge all the way to the top. Lots of nice 3 prongs as well. I have been following the \"trail\" of sang lately and finding alot of sang higher than I use too. Maybe I'm just not locking down the deep dark spots like I once done... thanks to this sight. Do many of you all find the \"parent\" plants higher up on the ridge? I also found a patch the other day that was about as big as a childs swimming pool. I stood there looking for a few minutes before it sank in. It was sang but, all the leaves were gone on the largest plants. They were snipped off just above the berries. I investigated and found deer tracks and dropping all around. Do you all have much trouble with deer eating your sang?
1 last question.. I'm sorry. How far can most of you all see say a nice 3 prong with the berries still green? I know there's a ton of variables. I've slowly started to see plants out to 30 yards or so but, I walked past 2 REALLY nice sangs the other day twice before I almost stepped on them. Anyways, I've been marking spots off on the map for tomorrow and can't wait for sun rise so I thought I would ask these questions.

Well, Ive noticed that the older the sang is the sooner the berries ripen, but that is just one varible. The amount of sun they get, soil type, moisture, and the ridge direction all contribute to how soon they ripen. But in general, in my experience, the age of the plant is the biggest factor.

By the sounds of it, your in some good sang woods.I have found grand pappy sang high up and lower down, but most of the big stuff Ive dug is higher up on the mountain. Generally it take me about 4 hrs to sang my way up to the good stuff (with a little luck). Almost always, I find \"Ole Grandpappy in the toughest, steepest, snakiest, most overgrown part of the mountain. The places nobody else wants to venture, lol.
Yeah hunter, deer love the sang. Ive found sang with nothing but the seed stem sticking up.

Well, spotting the sang wasnt too hard until I hit 40, lol. I usually dont sang in a place where its open enough too see for 30 yards. I can spot it at about 10 yards or so, and thats in the most open places Ive been. But if its a large bunch with red berries or if its already gold...yeah, I can spot it 30-40 yards off. Now if the canopy is opened up a little and the sun is shining bright, forget it. Ill walk right over top of it. Sun light screws with my eyes in the woods.

My dad beat all I ever seen. The last time we went sanging before he died, we sat down to rest a bit, and he spotted a 3 prong across the holler, in a grapevine thicket, and there couldnt have been more than 1 prong visible, had to have bee 45 yards. He was good. I still remember him following me up the mountain digging the sang I stepped on, \"You gonna dig that, son, or grind it into a poltice with your heel\".

To be truthful, there are times I'm not expecting to find the big stuff and end up looking over it and finding the smaller ones. Good example....15 yrs ago I was just below a cliff line near the top of the mountain, stinging weeds over your head but the holler was wide open, no timber. I was finding 3 and 4 prongs all over the place, smaller ones.
I bent over to dig this nice litte 3 prong and in the process of shoving weeds out of the way, knocked over one of the biggest 4 prongs Ive ever found. The top was over 3 feet high and the root weighed in at 8.5 ounces. I dug over 5 lbs of green sang outta that one patch. I just wasnt looking for the big stuff. Had 20 4 prongs 2 of which were growing on the same root, and 2, 5 prongs.
Well Ive sat here and wrote a book, lol. Just some of my own experiences.
Yak atcha later

I hardly consider myself any kind of expert, but will contribute my 2 cents anyways. As far as the berries ripening I think it has a lot to do with sunlight and moisture in the ground. I know of a couple of areas on west facing slopes where the berries usually ripen before other patches that aren't far away geographically. Also from what I've noticed in the past really dry years the berries ripen a little later. I've seen patches less than a half mile apart have about a 10 day difference of when their berries ripened. Even within the same patch they never all ripen at the exact time or for that matter not even on the same plant.

As far a finding it, it just depends. Generally while walking I try to focus on about a thirty foot radius, but stop often and look farther out while stopped. How far out just depends on foliage, but usually out to 30-50 yards. I have occasionally spotted some yellow ones out to about 70 yards, but that isn't something that happens normally.

From what you've posted it sounds like you're doing great. We all miss some which is a good thing.

5prong wrote:

I hardly consider myself any kind of expert, but will contribute my 2 cents anyways. As far as the berries ripening I think it has a lot to do with sunlight and moisture in the ground. I know of a couple of areas on west facing slopes where the berries usually ripen before other patches that aren't far away geographically. Also from what I've noticed in the past really dry years the berries ripen a little later. I've seen patches less than a half mile apart have about a 10 day difference of when their berries ripened. Even within the same patch they never all ripen at the exact time or for that matter not even on the same plant.

As far a finding it, it just depends. Generally while walking I try to focus on about a thirty foot radius, but stop often and look farther out while stopped. How far out just depends on foliage, but usually out to 30-50 yards. I have occasionally spotted some yellow ones out to about 70 yards, but that isn't something that happens normally.

From what you've posted it sounds like you're doing great. We all miss some which is a good thing.

I agree with 5 that sounds rite to me as well.

When it comes to spotting them at longer distances it helps to be up on the hillside a bit looking down for it.

When we hunt we usually go up or down a main hollow and most of the seng we find around here grows from the very bottom of the hollow up to about 1/2 the way up the side of the hill.

I usually let my partner walk that lower section and I prefer to get up higher so I am scanning the area just below me as we walk up or down the hollow.

When you are up above them looking down - they stand out a bit more - easier to spot that way - they just sort of smile up at you

Like others have mentioned I mostly focus on the immediate area 30-40 feet from where I am walking, but have spotted them out to 30-40 yards before especially when up above them looking down.

TNhunter