Kentucky Ginseng Harvesters & Collectors

GINSENG HARVESTERS AND COLLECTORS

Good harvest and stewardship of American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) starts with you! Laws and regulations relating to ginseng have been established to allow for healthy, sustainable plant reproduction. Following these laws and regulations help ensure ginseng production can continue for future generations.

Important dates for GINSENG HARVESTERS AND COLLECTORS

• Harvest season begins September 1 and ends December 1.
• Fresh or "green" ginseng can be sold beginning September 1.
• Dried ginseng can be sold from September 15 - March 31.
  

Life Cycle of American Ginseng

American Ginseng is a slow growing perennial plant. The word "perennial" means that the plant grows back each year. Ginseng propagation, or growing, is mainly achieved through seed dispersal and planting.

Before a ginseng plant can reproduce, the plant must grow and mature enough to produce red berries that contain seeds. In the fall, these red berries reach maturity.

The maturation and planting of these seeds is critical to the life-cycle of the American Ginseng plant. It is for this reason that legal harvest of ginseng begins in September to respect the natural life-cycle of the plant.

A ginseng seed must go through several cycles to germinate. This process typically takes 18 to 24 months if occurring in nature. If the top of a ginseng plant is removed before the berries have fully matured, the ginseng plant's ability to reproduce is limited. The tops of ginseng plants are commonly removed by wildlife browsing, property-owners "topping" to prevent theft of roots, or through out-of-season harvest.

If you plan to top your ginseng, you should only do so after the berries have reached their mature, red state. It’s also important to plant back the seeds of a harvested or topped plant in near proximity to the original plant. Ideally, seeds should be planted into the soil at a depth of 0.75 – 1 inch. Seeds taken from one plot of ginseng should not be introduced to another plot, as this increases the chances of spreading plant disease.

Kentucky regulations state that seeds should be planted using only a finger. This rule is a commonsense approach to seed planting, as the ideal planting depth is of equal measure to length of one’s index finger up to the first joint.

Unlike many other plants, a ginseng crop is not grown in one or two seasons. When discussing ginseng growth, it is better to use years and decades. A ginseng plant may grow from seed to a mature plant in as few as seven years, if in ideal growing conditions. More realistically this cycle takes 12-15 years or more.

Click here to download a diagram of the ginseng life cycle that includes images of each phase.