Appalachian living: Ginseng

Photo is by the USDA and public domain 
In our area the mountains and hollers are full of plants that can be both edible and valuable. While some local plants such as elderberries, blackberries, and raspberries are used for making jams we also have rarer plants that can earn you a few extra dollars on your hike.

The most notable of these valuable plants is Ginseng a plant prized primarily in China for the medicinal properties of it's roots. Although Ginseng has been used as a medicinal herb in China for thousands of years modern studies are inconclusive on it's actual medical applications and properties.

In West Virginia digging Ginseng requires you to abide by several laws and regulations in order to preserve the species for future generations with most being common sense practices like planting the berries back to grow the next generation, mandating a minimum size that can be dug, and enforcing a seasonal dig period that allows the plants berries to reach maturity. Local residents who practice the harvesting of Ginseng must follow all regulations when harvesting plants, wash and dry the roots, and then sell or weight receipt their harvest by the seasonal deadlines.

While Ginseng harvesting may sound like a great idea for fast cash even the best harvesters who've been doing it for decades sometimes spend the entire season hiking long distances searching for plants only to earn a few hundred dollars at the end of the season when the weigh in comes. Ginseng is one of the most valuable plants out there if you're lucky enough to find it in any decent quantity as it takes roughly 300 roots to make a pound and its scarcity makes it more of a family tradition than a career path.

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