TOPIC: Probable new Tennessee digging law

rootman wrote:

What really hurts the ginseng population is illegal digging and selling to another poacher that has the money and usually buys it for half price. This happens a lot all through the year. Really makes it hard on the honest person.

3 prong grab hooks suspended by 150lb test line at a height of 5 1/2 to 6 ft from the bottom will usually do good at catching carp and suckers.....wait we are talking about fishing right?............

Rediculous for the feds to try and set a standard date for the country. We have a August 20th date and for the most part berries a red and our drop dates are pretty much mid sept to the third week.Up high in the mountains we can have yellow tops in early Sept.I'm sure our mature dates are very different then say, Tenn.

States need to set there dates, not the damned feds! I agree with the fines, make em stiffer!

I agree with u Maya. A Sept 1st start date for the whole country just does not make sense. I'm at around 2000 feet. I find alout of plants that have dropped berries by Sept 1st. I try to find as many dropped berries as I can and plant them. But by Sept 1st alout of them might be gone. That could do more harm then good.

I emailed Andrea earilier this week and asked and got the reply below.
The Web site still shows Aug 15, but they are working on getting that updated.

TNhunter

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On Thu, Jul 12, 2012 at 6:30 PM, Andrea Bishop wrote:

Yes the harvest season has officially changed to Sept 1. It is also the beginning of the buying season. I am trying to get the website updated.

The state website now reflects that September 1 to December 31 are the dates that Tennessee ginseng can be harvested.

http://www.tn.gov/environment/na/tnginseng.shtml#Harvest

it's sept 1 here in Minnesota, I think it's a good law, all the US States should have the same season IMO.

I think the September 1st opening date is good for many States but a disaster to some Northern or colder climate States! I lived in Elkins, West Virginia for 10 years where the Northern Mountains of West Virginia already has a short growing season for just about everything. I have seen some years there with Ginseng having long lost it's berries and already dying off by early August. It is nothing to have cold spells and even frosts in the colder mountain locations anytime in August and especially in early September there which sets the dying off for the year in progress!

I believe the politics of the September 1st opening date has more to do with the National Forests Season of the same date! They are/were worried that Ginseng Hunters could hunt bordering private lands and easily slip over onto NF lands and back out without getting caught. Heck, they charge us $30 to dig one (1) pound in thirty (30) days in the section that we are able to get but do nothing for that $30 other than collect it for their' tills. They do not have increased Law Enforcement patrols to catch folks digging out of season nor do they purchase and sow seeds anywhere in the National Forests, so where is the conservation they are adamantly talking about???!!! If you are the least bit miffed by this, then contact your Congressman and/or Senator to try and get the National Forestry Division to do something for the $30 that we pay them.

Just to let you know, I paid the $30 for a large section in the North Cherokee National Forest last year. I spent many long days and hours searching this section which should have an abundance of Ginseng. However, in the thirty (30) days allotted, I only found six (6) plants of which five (5) were diggable! (One and a three-quarters dried ounces...Whooopi!) That was one (1) two prong which I did not dig and five (5) three prongs which I dug with not a single flat-top (one prong) to be found anywhere. Talking about someone poaching (digging out of season)! Whoever was in there before me, must have started the day most of the Ginseng came up in the Spring.


Frank

Just to let you know, I paid the $30 for a large section in the North Cherokee National Forest last year. I spent many long days and hours searching this section which should have an abundance of Ginseng. However, in the thirty (30) days allotted, I only found six (6) plants of which five (5) were diggable! (One and a three-quarters dried ounces...Whooopi!) That was one (1) two prong which I did not dig and five (5) three prongs which I dug with not a single flat-top (one prong) to be found anywhere. Talking about someone poaching (digging out of season)! Whoever was in there before me, must have started the day most of the Ginseng came up in the Spring.

Frank,
This is the same thing I have been telling folks on this board about how hard it is to find any diggable seng anywhere in the area of East Tennessee that I'm from. (Northern Cherokee National Forest). It has just been dug into near extinction here and there is no viable working plan to better the situation by the National Forest Service. They just take your money and nothing is done to help with enforcement. You can't even get them to answer the phone when you try to talk with them nor will they return calls. They sure know how to take that $30.00 from you. The ginseng that I found while out scouting was dug by someone in July. Good luck where ever you're hunting.
Hugh

same in my area the out of season digging year after year has taken a large toll on the wild ginseng,and im thinking the large growers dont care if there is a wild ginseng season ,if wild ginseng export was shut down then the growen ginseng will become more in demand.think about it!!

I can just almost see a picture of what the US Forest Service would do if pressed on this matter.

Well,
\"We will just close the Northern Cherokee National Forest to all digging. That will take care of that\". It would not, and it would not put a single plant back into the forest. Taking a few thousand dollars and replanting the forest would be a start and taking some drivers license away from poachers would be a good start. All they need to do to catch them is place some dye on roots. When they sell, it shows up.
Hugh