Ginseng: Green Gold

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Assuming that you plan to (eventually) plant seeds you grow yourself, your biggest capital outlay will be for an initial order of seedling roots and/or stratified seeds. Naturally, the greater the quantity you buy, the less you'll have to pay for each seedling or seed.

One-year-old seedling roots are generally priced from 10c to 17e apiece, two-year-old roots range from 210 to 300 each, and three year-old specimens cost 300 to 450 per item. To qualify for the lower ends of these price ranges, you'll have to buy at least 1,000 roots. The price of stratified seed varies from just over 1 to a bit over 2Q per seed. Ads generally offer seeds for $4 per ounce, $18 per thousand, and $110 for a pound (about 8, 000 seeds).

The advantages of using the more expensive seedling roots include their higher probability of sprouting and surviving . . . and the savings of one to three years of time and labor. (Within three years, the value of the seeds you've harvested should at least equal the initial cost of the seedlings.) The primary advantage of stocking with seeds is their lower unit price.

As I stated in the body of this article, I think it's a good idea to plant 750 square feet of permanent seedbeds for two years running. This will require about a hall pound of seed or 2,000 seedling roots each year . . .
at an annual cost of approximately $60 (for seed) or $600 (for 2,000 third year seedling roots). In succeeding years, you'll be planting your own seed.

Besides stocking your ginseng nursery, you may need to buy mulch, pest-control aids, and-perhaps little fertilizer. My total cost for such items last year was about $40. If you've decided to fence your plots, calculate that expense, as well.

You'll also need a few tools, such as a shovel . . . an axe for clearing saplings and cutting tree roots . . . a sturdy garden rake . . . and a tiller (unless you favor really hard work). You can rent or borrow the tiller, since you'll need it only when you prepare the beds for planting.

As far as labor goes, during the growing season you should be able to manage as much as an acre of ginseng on a part-time, after work, every other-day basis. (There's little to do for the plants in the winter.) The work required won't break your back, but it will bend it.

PRODUCTION

Your yield will depend, of course, on your cultivation methods, the soil's condition, and your horticultural expertise. From my own experience and that of other growers 1 know, 1 d say that one tenth of an acre (about 3,000 square feet of actual bed space) of cultivated ginseng raised in forest shade should yield a dried root weight of about 120 pounds at the end of five years. Now this is a fairly conservative figure . . . nevertheless, only growers with some experience behind them are likely to do this well. Yet a person who achieves considerably less success will still net a tidy sum!

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