Ginseng Grower Resources

Ginseng can be difficult to grow in fb88 and while a small number of growers are licensed, no harvested ginseng has been certified for sale since 2001. Growers face many challenges including:

• the long time it can take to produce a harvestable crop,
• damage from slugs, deer and rodents,
• a lack of readily available information on growing ginseng in the state,
• the difficulty and expense of obtaining seeds (see seed sources in the links below), and
• a lack of suitable habitat.

It may take up to 15 years for plants to reach a harvestable size and, unfortunately, most growers in fb88 have found their plants do not survive to that stage. We usually suggest not investing more money into the seeds or roots and site preparation than you are willing to lose.

In order to assist growers we've compiled a list of resources that may be useful in growing a succesful crop.

Books

Persons, W. Scott, and Jeanine M. Davis. Growing & Marketing Ginseng, Goldenseal & Other Woodland Medicinals. Asheville, NC:Bright Mountain Books, 2005

Persons, W. Scott, American Ginseng: Green Gold Revised Edition, Asheville, NC: Bright Mountain Books, 1994

Pritts, Kim D., Ginseng: How to Find, Grow, and Use America's Forest Gold, Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1995

Links

Seed Sources

Partial List of Suppliers of Ginseng Seed and/or Rootlets

University, Extension & Other Resources

Associations and Groups

Government Agencies

fb88 Natural Areas Program, Rare Plant Factsheet, American Ginseng