TOPIC: wild roots

Correct. Im almost for sure it states the issue of property ownership somewhere in all that but I may be wrong.
I make a Ginseng tincture that I use in my coffee every morning. I always harvest enough in the fall to make all I need but if I needed some in April, I wouldn't hesitate. I take from my Goldenseal patch a few times a year to use for sinus infections or sometimes my son has an ear ache and it works wonders for those.
Im sure few landowners use Ginseng medicinally and its not even an issue to consider as a hinderance to the Ginseng population

Hillhopper

I guess I have a hard time remembering that not everyone is a law abiding god fearing honest citizen. When I think about laws/rules I agree/disagree with, I need to remember that many of those laws/rules are there to keep dishonest people from harming others or the environment.

Mortis..

On the statement and question below..

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I don't agree with that law. Digging for selling, digging for consumption, or digging for transplant to start a patch on your private property are all the same in my book, you are digging the root from the original location in all 3 examples. What does it matter which option you do with the root?
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I guess the folks that wrote that into the TN Ginseng Laws.. did not feel that - digging for personal consumption, or digging for transplant, was such a threat to the ginseng population. The restrictions are clearly stated to only apply to those harvesting for sale or export.

I do agree that those harvesting for sale or export are much more likely to over do it.

In my case, I harvest roots in the digging season and keep enough to do me thru the year for my own consumption, and sell the rest.

A few years ago, when planting stratified seed (in January one year).. around a old log. A armadillo or something had been in there digging holes around that log. And had dug up a ginseng root. It was just laying there on top of the ground on a pile of fresh dirt. Only root I ever found in January

I took that root and brought it home and ate it.

I mentioned that in a post here... and a guy that used to post named Classicfur... questioned the legalities of my actions.

Evidently up in Main that would be illegal.

That is when I noticed in the TN Ginseng Laws... that the harvest season and other restrictions only apply for those that are selling or exporting it.

Not to those that are collecting a little for eating themselves.

TNhunter

Yep, I think that should be perfectly fine in any state, if it is for consumption. Even digging a root out of your own patch on your own property in May - Aug if you want, for consumption, should not be regulated. I understand the restrictions for those that are selling the roots they dig though.