TOPIC: More pictures from Tennessee

Fellows,
Here you go! Lots more pictures from Tennessee to get you started into the season. Notice all of the young emerging plants that did not come up last year because of \"delayed dormancy\". I hope this keeps anyone else from having this problem. I'm wishing all of you a great season and the feeling of just getting out into the woods is making my week.
Hugh

www.smokymountainflyguide.com/Choosing%2...20grow%20ginseng.htm

I'm with ya Hugh. I got out yesterday and counted about twenty new wild plants on my place that I've never seen before. It sure feels good to get reaquainted with my old friends (as ridiculous as that sounds). I plan to flag them soon and relocate them in the fall. They are in the line of fire of my planting plans for the next few years, I don't want to inadvertently kill or damage them in my clearing process. It's amazing what you can see before predation starts and other vegetation hides them. I know the harvest season being late in the year allows a lot to be unharvested due to this. I can honestly say,in my neck of the woods(no pun intended) the wild ginseng population isn't in danger at all. I'm sure it could be better but its doing ok I think. With a little stewardship it could definately thrive and hopefully will as long as I'm here. I often wonder how ginseng grew before the white man discovered it. I'm sure it grew as large, ancient roots probably knee high and as thick as mayapple patches. Long gone are those patches and I'm afraid as an ever growing human population increases, our truly wild places are in danger as well.
I'm rambling on but I'm going to continue for a bit more. A couple years ago a thirty five acre parcel of land was for sale but the timber rights went seperately. I was really interested because these woods was as close to a virgin forest as I had ever been in. To me, natural areas such as that is the best physical proof of a higher power. To be dwarfed and almost intimidated by an inanimate object is a strange and awesome feeling.

I contacted the timber company and tried to make an offer to pay them stump value and leave at least some of the trees if I bought it but they wasnt interested in a deal at all. \"Too much trouble to have to work around trees someone doesn't want damaged\" they said. I tried to convince them that these enormous trees were probably hollow and wasn't that profitable but they said \"maybe they are but maybe they aint\". Before it disappeared I carried my son to those woods so he could see a piece of nature that had been so long untouched by man this close to our home (that is few and far between these days).Long story short, the trees were cut and most of the largest of these majestic oaks, maples and poplars were hollow, pushed into a dozier pile and burned. Some parts of these trees were harvested but it was mostly a waste.They were two-three hundred years old I'm sure, maybe more. A two hundred year old tree is in the court house yard of a nearby town and it would have been dwarfed by these. All those years of life,growing, surviving and standing tall came to a swift close at the hand of greed and a saw. These woods stood there protected as the world moved on due to this land being passed down in a family for generations but eventually it came to the possession of some one who didn't appreciate it. I measured the stumps in diameter and a lot were 5-6 feet across.

In the end the stumps were dug out, the land leveled and it was planted in tobacco last year. I'm sure eventually there will be little house tracts all over that area and the generations to come will have no idea what once stood there,wild.

What would you give to take a stroll through the forests of several hundred years ago?

Hillhopper

Sorry Hugh, I didn't mean to try to hijack your thread by my lengthy, off-topic post.

Hillhopper

Hillhopper, I feel for ya brother. We had a 92-acre woods close to my home that was similar to what you are describing. The trees were so tall and large the canopy blocked the sun. No grasses, weeds or Japanese Honeysuckle. Just Ohio Woodland Perennials like Mayapple, Trillium, Jack-N-The-Pulpit and Blood Root and tons of Dwarf Ginseng. No Goldenseal or real Ginseng thou.

Anyway they wanted $400,000 for the 92 acres. I talked with an old fella in the real-estate business about the property and told him if we went in together we could timber it and get our money back and leave some nice trees standing thus owning 92 acres basically free with some nice trees remaining. I didn't know it at the time until he told me he was familiar with the woods as well and he and his wife spent many hours walking that private woods in amazement by it's beauty.

Come to find out he was sort of a tree hugger as I guess I am somewhat. We both agreed that we could own the property outright if we bought it and had it select cut.

But neither one of us could imaging cutting down one of those majestic trees let alone 75% of them.

So we didn't buy it due to that reason. Unfortunately the 92 acres sold quickly to another buyer. The new owner timbered 75% of the trees within the first 6 months leaving behind some 50 to 75 year old mixed hardwoods. They were somewhat good about it I guess by leaving some trees. However, the canopy opened up, sunlight killed the perennials and all that stands on the ground now are weeds, a maze of Japanese Honeysuckle, stickers etc. So sad to see this.

As you had described Hillhopper there were stumps left behind from some of the 300 or more year old hard woods. I am 6' tall and when I layed down on one of those stumps neither my head or my feet hit the edges.

The owner of the property did make enough money to pay himself back or pay off the loan. Then he flipped it to another buyer 2 years later for $575,000 if I remember correctly. He made out like a bandit. I still mushroom hunt in this woods but that's all it is good for now. It does faintly resemble it's former appearance.

I think it is awesome there are many on this forum that own large numbers of acres that are heavily wooded. With time those woods and many woods like it throughout America could look like old growth forest once again in the distant future.

We have some nice state parks here in Ohio where trees like this still exist. But finding private property where trees are of that size are few and far between for now. But time can fix what has been broken and forest like this could truly exist once again.

Hugh, Nice Pics and sorry for being long winded with my posting.

Latt

Fellows,
Thanks for your contributions to the thread. Doesn't it make you sort of bubble over with anticipation when you see a new post with pictures. I know that I appreciate all of you guys contributing. I have to believe that what we feel inside when were a part of Mother Nature is what it's all about. I've already been in both of my woodlots this morning and I'm about to take off to the mountains with camera, camcorder, and my beautiful dog. Maybe I can get some more beauties to look at and share. Have a good one.
Hugh

I. too, once had the opportunity to enjoy one of the fre remaining spots of virgin forest. Then the lumber deamons got hold of it, and it was cut. What a waste. It was very very sad to witness that.

Latt,
My son lives with his mother on a 1/3 acre track of land in a suburb of Georgia. So he absolutely loves getting out in the woods and participating in all he can involved with the outdooors. I have always told him \"This is our land.It's mine and your's now, and when you have a son it will be his too.\". I think he understands how important it is to keep it after I am gone. Hopefully there will be a lineage of Hillhoppers to come and one day it will be the old growth forest it once was. Lol

Hugh,
I agree. I am in the Landscape and Nursery trade and anything horticultural interests me. I have easily planted thousands of trees and I never get tired of it. The best feeling is seeing one we planted long ago and knowing Im responsible for it. I guess that's why Im so appreciative of what nature can accomplish if she is left alone. All of these trees we put in, I know I'll never see them get half as big as those mentioned earlier. I guess in a very literal sense, I am a tree hugger, most of them are too heavy to move one handed.
I use to go to the woods to just get away and clear my head, I guess that is one reason I started growing Ginseng. I now have a purpose while Im getting away from everything.
Im sure you fellas know what Im talking about, when your in a forest or naturally wild place, it's like being in a different world and nothing else is such a concern anymore.... Then you come out and the modern world smacks you in the face lol
Often when Im looking for ginseng, Im walking along seeing other plants and then I find one by itself, everytime Im thinking \"How did you get there? What brought you as a seed to this place?\" It's sad for a Ginseng grower and digger to say but, usually when I find one that is really old and large... I cant bring myself to kill it. I usually transplant it to where I can watch over it. Im always anxious to see how big and old it is and how it has grown underground but I hate to dry it out.

Ok, I'll hush now

Hillhopper

Hillhopper,
Once again I am with ya on the big ole ginseng plant. I find it difficult to kill it as well. I have transplanted many of the bigger ones over the years to a safer place for me to watch over them and to enjoy their majestic beauty.

I have no problem with someone that does actually dig a big ole plant to dry and sell as long as they plant the seeds correctly to ensure future generations of seng. But for me I just can't do it anymore.

I am glad little Hillhopper Jr. will carry on the family tradition and appreciation of the woods and what it has to offer. Hats off to all you fellas and your the little fellas like \"TNHUNTER Jr, Caleb Taylor and all the rest of them. I have three sons and only one of them enjoys the woods like I do.

Latt

I sure love reading posts like this one. I will post some pictures of what i accomplished last year on my plantings. 30lb of seed. I got hooked up with probably the largest grower in WV last year and learned from him and from books. I got lucky and found one of those large tree tracks of old growth. I ended up getting it for the price of the home on the land. It is just over 30 acres with trees up to six and a half foot by my circumference measurements. There are a tremendous amount of 45\" poplar on this lot and too many 36\" trees to count. The largest trees are Red Oak and following this is the popular trees. This woodlot is tree quarter poplar by the looks of it, some maple, and white/red oak, and few black walnut. Soil tests show between 3500 to over 6000 calcium levels. Probably a couple acres of goldenseal and tons of mayapple that all should be showing very soon. I hope my seeps sprout.
I have planed beds in spots where the old trees have been hit by lighting or died from other reasons. This is on a north west slope so I just may have enough light to grow ginseng. Moist rue should not be a big problem as I have spring and catch areas to collect water if a dry spell comes.

Latt,
I have some big ones that are quite old that I have transplanted. I was thinking while laying in the bed last night about if they last as long as I hopefully do, they are sure enough going to be old. They would be worth a pretty penny by that time but, If I hate to do it now Im sure I won't then either.

WVwhitewolf,
Sounds like you got yourself a nice spot at a good price there. It also sounds like your rollin the dice on Ginseng just as I am. Your grower friend,how much does he raise, did he ever give you any input on his yield,profit per acre or pound of seed planted, or any good advice you care to share. Always glad to here some info from someone farther along than I.

Hilhopper