ii8 



MAINI' ACKUri/lTKAl. KX IM-.K I M !•: X'r STATION. 



^ 



niature jilant of i;inscnj;- has a siiii;ie stem 8 to 15 inches hi"-h 

 and about as tliick as a lead pencil. At the toj) are five com- 

 pound leaves in a whorl, each resemblini;- a leaf of the horse- 

 chestnut. The leaves usually have five leaflets as shown in 

 fiij:ure 35. but on young or weak plants, there may be but three. 

 The single fliyivcr stalk, rising above the leaves and bearino- a 

 small cluster of greenish -white flowers followed by dark, purple 

 berries, will help in distinguishing this plant from other similar 

 ones. 



The seedling roots 

 resemble small pars- 

 nips, but the older 

 J roots are usually pe- 

 culiarly branched 

 and in shape often 

 resemble the human 

 form. Two of the 

 mature roots are shown in figures 

 j 36 and 37. The name ginseng sig- 

 nifies "man plant" and is applied 

 ^~~^ because of the fancied resemblance 

 Figure 36. I tsuggested. The greater this re- 

 semblance, the higher the value placed upon the 

 root by the Chinese. It is seldom that the re- 

 ^ semblance is so marked as in figure 37. 



American ginseng, the use of 

 which has to a large extent super- 

 seded that of the native plant in 

 China, was first discovered near 

 Montreal in 1716. It is now found 

 in the United States from Maine 

 and Minnesota southward to the 

 mountainous regions of Georgia 

 and Alabama. At present the chief 

 sources of supply are Ohio, West 

 Virginia and Minnesota, though 

 small quantities are collected in 

 many other states. The usual 

 price per pound for the dried root 



is $2.50 to $3.00. Figure 37- 



