TOPIC: Many Tops & Plants That I Buy - This topic is educational

Billy,

I truly enjoy your great informational posts and hope to use the information and pics to supplement my' fixed and somewhat strained retirement income! Besides, the Doc says I need to get the exercise after having three Heart Attacks this April. It is a long story which I may relay at a later time but please don't worry! The last Heart Attack on April 30th was the teller but I was lucky as my' heart and arteries did not suffer any real damage and there are no blockages. I am on medication now, I quit smoking and will be working on the exercising and losing some weight. It seems my' BMI (which I call Butt Mass Index) is a little on the high side as is my' Blood Pressure and Heart Beat Rate. Hugh and myself have a Ginseng scouting trip planned for tomorrow (Wednesday) and I am sure that we will come across many of the plants that you have highlighted so far. I may even dig some plants if we both have the energy and time! If one of us gets into trouble, we have the other person to reply on and we will also have Boomer with us.

Thanks! I can't wait for you to upload more pics and information on other plants!


Frank

Huntsman thank you and I am glad to share these with you all.

I sure no how it is to be sick and alot of hurting at times to.We will keep you in our prayers for sure man and hope that you can loose a little weight.I to am working on that I have lost 26 pounds so far.My goal before giunseng sseason is 50 pounds it is hard to do,but i am trying.

Billy,

I have a teenage stepson who wants to \"dig up\" some cash to go toward his first car. We have some land with Mayapple, bloodroot, and bethroot all growing on it. Good stewardship wise, when is the proper time to harvest this roots? I've only done ginseng myself and don't know a lot about these other plants. We are in Kentucky by the way. In fact, some of the harvesting will be close to where you live.

Thanks,

mhowa

Billy wrote:

Huntsman thank you and I am glad to share these with you all.

I sure no how it is to be sick and alot of hurting at times to.We will keep you in our prayers for sure man and hope that you can loose a little weight.I to am working on that I have lost 26 pounds so far.My goal before giunseng sseason is 50 pounds it is hard to do,but i am trying.

Billy,

Thanks and I hope you meet your goal!

I am sure that Hugh will agree that on Wednesday, we had a fairly productive and beneficial day of scouting for Ginseng and other herbal plants! Scouting at elevations from close to 4,000 feet upwards to 4,500 feet or more, we saw the significance of the recent cold spells on the plants. While we located probably more than 20 Ginseng plants, quite a few of the plants were in early development while in the more sunlit but frost protected spots, the plants were very well developed. It is my belief that there are truly more Ginseng plants in the areas we traveled but some of the plants have either not reared their' tops (heads) above the ground or if they have, they are small and still unrecognizable!

Concerning other sellable Herbal plants, it would suffice to say that we saw an abundance of plants that we could identify and a much larger abundance that we could not identify! We probably saw enough Beth Root to keep someone busy digging for months or even years. We also saw a fairly large abundance of Blood Root, Black Cohosh, Blue Cohosh, May Apple, Skunk Cabbage and Golden Seal. I saw one plant species (actually more than one species) that I was intrigued with and will post pictures as soon as possible in hopes that you or someone else can identify it. This (?) plant apparently is quite plentiful in the area we scouted on Wednesday but as far as I can recall, I have not seen much of this plant in other locations!


Frank

Picture #1

Picture #2

Some Ginseng pics from our scouting trip.

mhowa thank here is the information you requested.

May Apple - has a green apple that forms on it and inside the apples are the seeds.I always wait untill the fruit is soft before I dig the plants.If you find some close to you watch the apples grow it is neat.Once the apple is soft it will remove from the pod very easy and like a melon it is easy to fall from its pod then you can dig.My advice is to check your apples and then after every season the harvest time in your individual areas will always be the same.The apples are good to eat,but do not eat the seeds..


Bloodroot - is one of the first flowers to bloom beginning in late winter and continuing into early spring. The root can be harvested in autumn starting a little before or after the 1st of September.

Bethroot - Is just like bloodroot it is a early bloomer and is ready for harvest by September.

mhowa Many people dig these plants before the fruit is ripe,but that is why I liked your question.Just because a plant is not protected in the wild that does not mean in any way that us diggers should not follow good stewardship with them.Simply because if we do not allow the fruits to ripen then soon we will not have anything to dig.Thimbs up to you my friend.

Have him to wash the roots good better than with ginseng most dealers and buyers like some dirt in the rings of ginseng,but the off roots are totaly different they need to be good and clean.It is good to lay them out on a screen and use a water hose with some type of pressure to clean the roots well.Then just lay them in the sun and let them dry,a green house works well also with a fan.

Good Luck to him I respect a young man that is willing to get out and dig a vehichel from the earth I have did that myself along time ago.

Billy.


mhowa wrote:

Billy,

I have a teenage stepson who wants to \"dig up\" some cash to go toward his first car. We have some land with Mayapple, bloodroot, and bethroot all growing on it. Good stewardship wise, when is the proper time to harvest this roots? I've only done ginseng myself and don't know a lot about these other plants. We are in Kentucky by the way. In fact, some of the harvesting will be close to where you live.

Thanks,

mhowa

Hey Billy,
Not trying to hijack your thread, but had a couple of pics to share. I have posted in the past about having some really nice patches of goldenseal (or yellowroot as everyone around here calls it). This first pic is one of those patches. This is a wild patch that has been thriving for decades even though I have dug from it many times:)

The look of it seems planted. You sure some guy didn't plant it and die/forget about it? Or do you just dig in rows?