Getting to the Root of Ginseng Farming’s Impact on Native Plant Populations

Photo: Patches of ginseng grow on a forest farm in Pennsylvania. Photography courtesy of Eric Burkhart. Article by Lindsay Campbell. Modern Farmer – August 25, 2021.

It’s an endangered herb, routinely yanked from Pennsylvania’s forest floors due to a soaring demand in Asia, but the impact of ginseng production on the plant’s wild populations has been something of an enigma in the state.

American ginseng has been gathered commercially in the northeastern United States for nearly three centuries. Each year, roughly 1,000 pounds of dried ginseng root are exported from Pennsylvania. Much of that is sold as wild ginseng, which has been listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora agreement since 1975. But a new study finds that it might not be so wild after all—and may have negative repercussions for native populations of the plant. […]

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Related articles:

Wild Ginseng Harvest Regulations – Missouri Department of Conservation

Ginseng Plant Profile – The Spruce

Ginseng Season Starts Sep. 1 – The West Virginia Daily News