TOPIC: Some things to help you Gareth

Today, I made my 5th trip to the mountains to plant early ripening berries. We are coming to the last of the early ripening strain and this picking was about the largest that I've made so far. I decided to take these to the area where the Blue Ridge Escarpment pushes back into the edge of the Appalachians to show Gareth what it looks like at a real high altitude and the rich black soil that he will be seeing if he buys property in the region. This is somewhere in the 4000ft high range and the ginseng is at it's best in this area. The soil is as black as the Ace of Spades and it is so loose that roots can go over a foot deep without any problem. These are some of the things to look for as you check out your new properties.

Hugh

Black Cohosh

Cohosh up close:

Baneberry or Dollseye:

work of a poacher just a few hours earlier:

Young ginseng plants :

showing the Hankins Style of planting berries. These rows can be short or long.

Look at the dark rich soil:

These sticks are to protect from deer or turkeys:

Finding more young ginseng plants as I move along: