Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1908-01-28
THE CULTURE OF GINSENG

The Student Farmer, published IN
Madison, in It's December number con
tains very interesting article on the
culture of ginseng from the pen of j
Fl. KoeLler. of this city. He takes ar
fact that the plant is highly esteemed
by the Chinese and that they know how
to prepare a most valuable medicine
from the root of the same. He further
shows at length that ginseng is a
native plant in North America and as
early as in 1858, an eypor. trade devel-
oped which reached y va'ue of $40. 600.
Articles have been pubb,ae0 IL Wausau
relating these facts. Mr. Koehler. has
been iDterestedin ginseng CULTURE since
1891, and now has q garden IN which
there are $50, 900 plants, ranging in age
from one to five years, and has planted
$4,000 plants and expects to plant as
many more the coming spring. Mr.
Koehler writes:
During the last three years we have
dug matured roots and dried them for
the market. In 1905 we received $500
per pound, in 1906 we received So 100 per
pound and at this writing the price
offered for dry cultivated roots is from
Sc rs to 500 per pound. We have not
as yet sold our This falls crop, the roots
not being quite dry, but win state how
much we harvested and the area of the
ground On which it grew. which will
give you an idea of what can be done
in the culture of this plant.
"We dug $40 pounds, green weight
The roots were grown on tifty-eight
beds, each bed being Skis feet, the
total of the ground planted being
3, ,132 square feet, a trifle over one
fourteenth of an acre. As it takes a
little over three pounds of green roots
to make one pound of dry, the value of
this small load, which in bulk is about
two sugar barrels full, is nearly 81 800
These roots were grown from the seed.
The ground was occupied by this crop
for five years. The roots dug and dried
by no means represent the total crop
produced, for these roots, during the
last three years of their life, have pro-
duced a large quantity of seed which
was planted and has produced young
roots and these young roots and the
remaining seed represent nearly three
times the value of the dry roots, so that
in reality the value of the total crop
produced on the above mentioned space
of ground in five years time is over
$5 600 90, or nearly go per square
foot"
He takes up the culture of the plant
at length, the cost, etc, and then tells
of the rumor started several years ago
about the quality y~being poor and there
fore no sale for it, of this he says:
1T will perhaps be remembered tbst
two or three years ago a rumor was
through the press to the effect
that there was no demand for the cul-
tivated ginseng. This rumor was started
as follows Some growers tried to force
the growth of the root by the use of |
fertilizer and by so doing |
invited disease into their gardens |
When they saw the roots were decay /
ing, they dug up the partially decayed |
roots, dried them by artificial heat and |
sold them still in the process of decay
ing to inexperienced buyers. When
these defective roots reached the ulti-
mate market they were rejected. The
ginseng growers who were on the in
side" recognized the false alarm and |
are now reaping the benefit while the
was scared OUT
The article is accompanied by full
page picture of one of the large covered
beds of Mr.. Koehler. As ginseng is
becoming much cultivated plant il
his section, the article is interesting
reading.