TOPIC: Newbie intro and questions...

Hi all,
My siblings and I own 22 wooded acres in midstate NY. Have sat on it for over 25 yrs...just pay taxes. Property is probably best suited to agriculture ....no water, utility lines etc. Anyway I have been researching with interest growing ginseng. Will have the soil tested in the spring and go up and see if I can identify any trees, plants etc that might indicate its conducive to growing ginseng. Anyway wondering if there are any growers in NY or nearby? The empire ginseng growers associations number seems to be defunct, as well as other contacts in this area. I read that its best to buy stratified seed from a reputable grower in your own geographical area? Is this true? And it seems it cost a whole lot more than $1500.00 an acre to plant seed. What is a reasonable price for seed and can anyone recommend a reputable seller? I thought I might start with an acre. Do any of you seasoned growers think it is too much to bite off initially? Thanks so much !!

From your question Nikko comes your answer. Unless you know what you are doing \"don't do it\". To grow Ginseng takes years of knowledge and patients, but the bottom line is if your still going to do this then you will need to get someone who knows Ginseng. I can give you some basic ground rules that I use here on my property in the mountains of eastern KY, but you will still need someone up there with you who has the knowledge and experience to help you succeed. If you have any questions please send them via email and I will do my best to help you. oh, and the answer to your question about \"I read that its best to buy stratified seed from a reputable grower in your own geographical area? Is this true?\" and the answer is yes. even transplanting a root from one spot to another will show up in the root later on down the road. Hope this helps....

Hi Nikko and welcome to the board. There are differing thoughts and schools as to seed source. Yes it would be great to have all native seed but, with all the sang that has been dug and sold over the past couple hundred years, any sang growing in an area was probably due to someone planting the seed there. It may be difficult to find seed for this year but, there are sources and the best thing to do is find some ginseng dealers (buyers) and ask them about seed. Much of the seed available will come from ginseng farms in Michigan or Canada. There is nothing wrong with their seed as far as germination and growing.

I would do some studying of your ground and maybe plant a pound or so in as many spots of the property as possible, and see where the seed \"wants\" to grow. You can pick some of the most likely spots, such as North and North East facing slopes and look for compatible plant life that grows where sang grows.

Please do not think you will go in, plant real heavy on your ground, and in four or five years have a fortune in ginseng growing on your property. You may be just as far ahead to play the lottery. This is not a get rich quick scheme that anyone can do. You will find a lot of hard work involved and the sang may not grow well on your ground.Even if it does, others may discover it and help themselves to your hard work before you get to it. Are you or one of your siblings living on or close to the ground, that it can be watched close? Do you go there quite often? Is the property posted to keep others out? All these things you should think about.

Do lots of reading and investigating and good luck with your ginseng.

Eagle, if a ginseng is transplanted, how will it show up in the root later?

Thanks.
Jeff

Good question Jeff, but a long and complex answer. I'll try and sum it up as simple as I can for you.
When a root(Ginseng)is moved(dug-up)from it's \"birthground\"(where the seed grew from a berry)and is transplanted into new earth(not it's original birthground)it will show up in the root later on. For example: You grow some seng on your property that you dug up from the woods, lets say a bunch of 4 prons and then a year or two later you decide you want to sale it as wild seng. One of the first things a dealer who knows his business will notice is the roots rings will be smooth or inward. That lets the dealer know your seng is either home grown or has been transplanted. It's still seng, but of way less value and of course that is another lesson in itself. I don't know if this shed any light for you Jeff, but I hope it helped some. There is so much more on this subject I could go over and write about, but I would have to write a book on here....

One other thing Jeff, Just a quick note. The soil, type of ground(rocky, dry, wet, ect..)and location(mountains, hills, flatlands, wetlands, North, Deep South, ect..) all play a factor in how the seng will grow. If I take a root from a rocky-out-crop(rocky area) and plant in my back yard in soft fertilized soil, the root will know it's no longer in the rough harsh rocky area that it adapted for from it's birth and will cause this change and sometimes they want even make it. I've dug seng off the sides of cliffs before with nothing more than a little moss and what little soil was washed or blown in the crack of the rock to give it just enough nuetriants to live there.

Sorry, I forgot to log in..lol..

Good question Jeff, but a long and complex answer. I'll try and sum it up as simple as I can for you.
When a root(Ginseng)is moved(dug-up)from it's \"birthground\"(where the seed grew from a berry)and is transplanted into new earth(not it's original birthground)it will show up in the root later on. For example: You grow some seng on your property that you dug up from the woods, lets say a bunch of 4 prons and then a year or two later you decide you want to sale it as wild seng. One of the first things a dealer who knows his business will notice is the roots rings will be smooth or inward. That lets the dealer know your seng is either home grown or has been transplanted. It's still seng, but of way less value and of course that is another lesson in itself. I don't know if this shed any light for you Jeff, but I hope it helped some. There is so much more on this subject I could go over and write about, but I would have to write a book on here....

Eagle, if you do write the book, I'd be the first one to buy it. I heard somewhere the root will \"change directions\" if transplanted but don't know much abou rings when transplanted. As a novice learning about the topic, even the basic stuff such as \"rings growing inward\" is unfamiliar to me. If you took the ginseng from the cliff and grew it in nutrient rich soil, other than losing the rings and get fat, any other changes occur? How do people grow wild simulated sang then? Can dealers spot those too?

Thanks!

Thanks for the kind words Jeff, but I'm not a writer..lol..sure could use the money off of a best seller though..lol..but the answer to your question: \"If you took the ginseng from the cliff and grew it in nutrient rich soil, other than losing the rings and get fat, any other changes occur? How do people grow wild simulated sang then? Can dealers spot those too?\":::> YES, Another example of change might be the \"color\" of the root and also the root might grow smooth, what we call \"bone seng\" also adding miricle grow or other chemicals will show up and that is a big no-no. As for \"wild simulated seng\" it's not wild. Anything grow/farmed/cultivated \"IS NOT WILD SENG\" that is why it's of less value than wild harvested seng.However, if you know what your doing you can make good money over time farming seng as well. Yes, Dealers can spot those to or he's in the wrong business..lol.. Are you a new seng digger Jeff? or are you just interested in farming/cultavating your on seng?

Eagle,

I am new to this field but started buying ginseng (for myself) and going to the meets and found some smooth \"wild ginseng\" you were talking about being sold by a dealer who is alson known to grown his own ginseng. Many of your information connects with what I've seen and read. I plan on digging some this year, and hopefully learn enough to someday grow some. I have gone over some of Bob Beyfuss's information on woodsgrown ginseng cultivation and am interested in learning any and all information on ginseng.

Jeff