VARIOUS FARM PRODUCTS 599 



those that have been cultivated. The tendency to branch is some- 

 what greater, and the disposition of the branches to diverge widely 

 is more pronounced. Cultivated roots from one to five years old 

 show only a short thick neck representing this stem, but it increases 

 with age, and its great length in wild plants indicates that they are 

 old. There can be no question but that the plant can be as easily 

 grown as other cultivated plants, provided it is furnished with the 

 right kind of soil and with shade. No one should^mdertake ginseng 

 culture unless he has on his land the means of supplying these neces- 

 sary conditions, or else is willing to incur the expense and trouble of 

 furnishing them artificially. The seeds are gathered from berries 

 on either wild or cultivated plants during the summer and pre- 

 served in a slightly damp loose humus, consisting of a mixture of soil 

 and decayed leaves and other vegetation. They must not be allowed 

 to dry out thoroughly at any time. The seed, which ripen during 

 the last half of July, should be planted late in the summer or fall. 

 They germinate after about 18 months. Dead leaves, remains of 

 crumbled logs or the like should be put over the planted ground. 

 In the absence of these, well rotted stable manure may be used. Wild 

 roots may also be gathered (and they grow in the woods in most 

 Northern States and southward to Kentucky, where they may be 

 found almost anywhere) and transplanted in prepared beds with 

 the best results. The wild roots, well prepared, will bring from $2 

 to $4.50 per pound in domestic markets, while in Japan and China 

 they, and now especially the cultivated ones, frequently bring from 

 $7.50 to $10 per pound. (Ann. Kept. Ky.) 



