Choosing a Location for Ginseng Cultivation in Ohio
Growing American Ginseng: The Ideal Site Conditions Revealed
American ginseng, a valuable medicinal crop, thrives in specific environmental conditions that replicate its natural woodland habitat. Here's a guide to the optimal site conditions for growing this prized plant.
Topography
American ginseng prefers well-drained slopes over flat or poorly drained areas. Slightly sloped terrain helps avoid waterlogging that can cause root diseases.
Forest Canopy
The ideal overstory is a hardwood forest canopy providing about 70 to 75% shade. Species such as black walnut, sugar maple, tulip poplar, oak, sycamore, and basswood create the dappled light conditions that ginseng needs. This level of canopy cover mimics the plant's natural environment and protects it from direct sunlight.
Understory Vegetation
The presence of a natural leaf litter layer is important, as it contributes organic matter and helps maintain moisture. Ginseng grows in the understory beneath the canopy, where it receives filtered light and humidity consistent with forest floor conditions.
Soils
The soil should be rich in organic matter, light in texture, slightly acidic (pH 5.0 to 6.0), and well-drained to prevent root rot from excess moisture. Such soils retain adequate moisture but drain well enough to avoid waterlogging.
Additional Environmental Factors
- Moisture: Consistently moist but not waterlogged soil conditions are critical. American ginseng requires humid, well-aerated soil environments often found in forested slopes.
- Climate: The ginseng-growing regions like Wisconsin have cool breezes and moderate temperatures that favor quality growth, indicating that temperate climates with good seasonal variation are preferred.
Dealing with Theft and Security
Given the potential for theft, growers take various measures to secure their crops. Sites near a grower's primary residence tend to be the most secure, allowing for frequent checks and quick reaction to threats. Some growers remove the fruiting stems and leaves in late July or early August to help conceal their ginseng during this critical period. Planting small plots of ginseng over a large area can help to minimize the threat of theft.
Preventing Over-Fertilization
Adding too much or the wrong type of fertilizer or lime can be detrimental to ginseng growth, increasing susceptibility to disease or over-stimulation of growth that often results in a decrease in the value of the ginseng root.
Choosing the Right Site
Good indicators of moist, well-drained productive sites include yellow-poplar, sugar maple, American beech, American basswood, black walnut, and yellow buckeye. Sites near a grower's primary residence, on north and east-facing slopes, and on the lower 1⁄4 to 1/3 of the slope, on all other aspects, are commonly associated with good ginseng sites.
A quick method to approximate the amount of shade on a site is to place 10 or more white paper plates at even distances on the ground at noon on a sunny summer day, and count the number of plates that are at least half shaded.
Common Understory Plants
Spicebush, pawpaw, jack-in-the-pulpit, bloodroot, wild ginger, blue and black cohosh, trilliums, Solomon's seal, various ferns (particularly maidenhair fern), ramps, and goldenseal are commonly found on good ginseng sites.
Preventing Poaching
Some growers maintain secrecy and only let closest friends and family know about ginseng sites. Posting property to let outsiders know that ginseng and other medicinal herbs are cultivated and that poachers will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law is another approach. Some growers enlist neighbors to provide an additional layer of protection.
[1] University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension. (n.d.). American Ginseng. Retrieved from https://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/A3147.pdf [2] University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension. (n.d.). American Ginseng: Cultivation. Retrieved from https://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/A3148.pdf [3] National Wildlife Federation. (n.d.). American Ginseng. Retrieved from https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Native-Plant-Feature/Profiles/American-Ginseng [4] University of Illinois Extension. (n.d.). Ginseng Culture: Soil and Site Selection. Retrieved from https://web.extension.illinois.edu/cfivt/ginseng/ginseng_soil_and_site_selection.cfm [5] University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension. (n.d.). American Ginseng: Climate. Retrieved from https://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/A3149.pdf
- Choosing a site for American ginseng cultivation should consider nutrient-rich soils with a slightly acidic pH and a combination of understory vegetation common in hardwood forests, such as spicebush, pawpaw, wild ginger, and Solomon's seal, to replicate its natural environment in terms of soil composition, moisture levels, and sunlight exposure.
- To maintain the quality of the American ginseng root for medicinal purposes, growers should avoid over-fertilization, as nutrient-rich soils might lead to increased susceptibility to diseases or over-stimulation of growth, resulting in a decreased value of the root. Instead, letting natural leaf litter contribute organic matter and maintain moisture in the soil would be more beneficial for the plant's nutrition and growth.
