Growing Ginseng in Forested Environments in Canada

Growing Ginseng in Forested
Environments in Canada
Presented by Bob Beyfuss, Cornell University Ginseng
Specialist (retired) [email protected]
American Ginseng is a Native North American
Plant that is closely related to Asian Ginseng
• Once abundant, wild ginseng is now considered
scarce in much of its native range and is federally
protected
• The wild plant has exacting habitat requirements
• Wild ginseng has become very valuable with
prices ranging from $800 to $4,500 per pound
dried weight
Wild Ginseng Distribution in Canada
First Recognized in Quebec by Europeans
in 1715
• Father Joseph Francois Lafitau read about the virtues
of ginseng from the reports of another Jesuit
Missionary, Pierre Jartoux who used in it China and
who described its habitat in great detail
• Lafitau studied Jartoux’s description of the soil and
climatic conditions favorable to ginseng and in the fall
of 1715, he found it somewhere between Ottawa and
Montreal
Wild Ginseng Legal Status
• Ginseng was listed on the Canadian Species at Risk Act
in 2003 which affords protection to the species on
federal lands.
• Québec listed ginseng as threatened (the highest risk
category) on the Loi sur les espèces menaces ou
vulnerables in 2001 which affords protection from
harvest and trade in wild specimens
• There is no legal harvest of wild ginseng in Canada for
any purposes
It may be grown in a forest using two
main system of cultivation
• Wild simulated, with varying ranges of care and
intensity
• Woods cultivated, also with varying ranges of
care and intensity
• Woods cultivated systems utilize mechanical
tillage
• Wild simulated systems use hand tools to work
up the soil
95% of all Cultivated Ginseng is grown in
artificially shaded fields, such as this in Ontario
Woodland Site selection
•Wild simulated systems are most successful
when an ecologically suitable site is utilized
•Ideal sites once harbored healthy wild
populations that have been extirpated
•Woods cultivated systems also perform
better in ecologically suitable sites
What are the site conditions where
ginseng is likely to grow?
•Sites where sugar maple trees grow well are
the best candidates
•Prefers sloping southeast facing slopes with
good air and water drainage
•Soils with high levels of calcium are required
for good growth
Sugar Maple is the most important
companion tree in Canada
Wild ginseng is often associated with
certain herbaceous plants
• 1.Maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum)
• 2.Baneberry, “dolls eyes” (Actaea pachypoda and
A. rubra)
• 3.Spikenard (Aralia racemosa)
• 4. Jack in the Pulpit (Arasaema triplylum)
• 5. Wild ginger (Asarum canadense)
• 6. Dutchman’s breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)
Maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum)
Red and white baneberry (Actaea sp) are
also called red and white doll’s eyes
Planting Ginseng
•Wild Simulated systems may begin by
seeding at a rate of 50 seeds per square
meter and thinning to approximately
five plants per square meter.
•Normal mortality may eliminate need to
thin by year 3
This area had far too many seeds planted
initially
This two year old planting still needs thinning
Ginseng plants grow slowly and change in
appearance over the years
Woods cultivated site preparation
Seeds are planted in rows
Thinned beds are still crowded
Good sites grow big plants!
Big Plants = Big Roots!
Maintenance
• Wild simulated plantings usually just left alone
but may still require protection from pests and
diseases
• Gypsum (calcium sulfate) is often added
annularly to both wild simulated and woods
cultivated when soil calcium levels are below
2,000 pounds per acre
• Gypsum adds calcium but does not change pH
Fertilizer
• All Fertilizers, including organic sources such as
manure or compost, bone meal etc. seem to
predispose ginseng to diseases
• Lime (calcium carbonate) raises pH and increases
nutrient availability, also leading to diseases
• Add lime only when pH is below 4.5
• Optimal pH may be 5.0 to 5.5
Woods cultivated tillage
•Woods cultivated raised beds often
incorporate shredded sugar maple leaves to
increase calcium and organic matter levels
(10% or more is optimal)
•Sugar maple leaves are 1.75% calcium dry
weight
Diseases
• Alternaria blight most serious foliar disease
• May be seed borne
• Highly contagious
• Fungicides required (organic or chemical)
• Once present, never gone
• Does not kill roots directly but weakens plants
over time
Alternaria blight lesions
Blight may wipe out an entire
garden in weeks, but roots survive
In general, the more intensively the
site is cultivated
• The more likely disease will occur
• The more likely rodent problems will occur
• The more likely pesticides will be required
• The more likely a higher yield per square foot will be
obtained
• The more likely the roots will resemble field cultivated
and fetch a lower price
• The less likely it will be mistaken for wild
Mammals
Deer may prohibit ginseng growing
Devastate both wild simulated and wood
cultivated systems
Small rodents i.e. mice, voles, chipmunks
may be equally devastating
Mice often get all the berries in wooded sites
Mice are cute..but…….
They can devastate ginseng roots
Security may become an issue when
ginseng attains value
Harvesting
• Most wild simulated or woods cultivated ginseng is
dug by hand in the fall
• Roots weigh most in late fall
• Wild simulated ginseng is usually grown for a period
of at least 8 years
• The older the roots, the more valuable
• 25 year old ginseng is worth 5 to 10 times the price
of 8 year old
Wild versus “artificially propagated”
•If ginseng is to be sold and certified,
growers must comply with all rules and
regulations
•Growers must be able to prove they grew
the ginseng they are selling
•Only “artificially propagated” ginseng may
be sold from Canada
Drying Ginseng
•Ginseng is best dried slowly over a period of
days to weeks at temperatures of 80 to 100
degrees with good air circulation
•Spread roots in a single layer on a screen
•Warm attics work well
•Do not dry in oven or food dehydrator if
temperature exceeds 100 degrees F
Roots will loose two thirds of their
weight when completely dry
Ginseng May Also Be Made into “value added “ products
but these products may be subject to many regulations
Questions? Comments? Naptime?
Fishing stories?
Thanks for listening and watching!