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Appalachian Ginseng
Written By: Donna Rhodes | Issue: 2017/01 - Winter
Ginseng is derived from the Chinese word “Renshen” (Ren: person, and shen: root). Characteristically, the ginseng root splits into two leg-like extensions. On occasion, it grows into a complete figure. Think mandrakes in Harry Potter… without the shrieking faces.
Appalachian ginseng is the gold standard. China and Korea are two of our largest importers. Jim Corbin, plant protection specialist with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services spends a good deal of time making sure protected state park ginseng is marked with a silicon dye. If poached, it will glow red-orange under black light. The dye will also get on poacher’s clothing and skin but they won’t even know it’s there until the black light shines. Over the years 15,000 plants have been confiscated this way and returned to public land or sold to finance the protection of wild ginseng.
While Westerners value ginseng for its medicinal properties (lowering blood pressure and other health benefits) the Chinese admire its aesthetic and aphrodisiac qualities. An exquisitely developed ginseng root, for example, might be placed in a glass box and used as part of a dowry. In Korea roots are valued more for size than beauty.
Corbin says there are 70-90 grades of ginseng depending on the people doing the grading: the higher the grade, the higher the value. In America, ginseng is generally sold in bulk and sorted to grade further down the line. It goes through much handling and processing at borders before it arrives at its final destination.
If ginseng has a huge Asian market, what about its appeal in North Carolina? Moonshiners might pop a root into their brew, let it stew and take a morning shot. Tonic, you know.
But Corbin says that recent generations no longer conserve ginseng as their ancestry did. In fact, many see it as a quick buck, particularly those hooked on pills. Users who know the woods will dig up a few roots, get a fistful of dollars, spend it on pills and come back for more.
If you want to learn about ginseng, its importance to the region, and how to grow and conserve it, Google ginseng. Or visit macon.ces.ncsu.edu/profile/alan-durden/ for more information.
