526  Goldenseal  an  Admirable  Side  Crop.  |Aj 
m.  Jour.  Pharm. 
November,  1914. 
properties,  and  was  commonly  used  by  Indians  and  early  settlers 
as  a  remedy  for  sore  mouth  and  inflamed  eyes ;  also  as  a  bitter  tonic 
in  stomach  and  liver  troubles. 
Until  about  the  year  1880  the  prices  paid  for  crude  goldenseal 
rarely  ranged  over  8  to  12  cents  a  pound,  these  prices,  as  a  matter 
of  course,  being  based  on  the  actual  cost  of  collecting  and  curing  the 
material  where  it  was  abundant.  In  1890,  however,  the  approaching 
scarcity  of  the  root  was  manifested  by  rising  prices,  and  at  the  close 
of  the  next  decade  the  cost  had  advanced  to  an  average  of  58  cents 
a  pound.  Early  in  1904  the  price  passed  the  dollar  mark,  the  year 
closing  with  wholesale  quotations  varying  from  $1.35  to  $1.50. 
With  the  exception  of  slight  fluctuations  in  1912,  which  were 
apparently  the  result  of  overcollection,  there  has  been  a  steady 
advance  in  the  price  of  the  dried  root,  both  wild  and  cultivated. 
The  prices  paid  to  growers  and  collectors  of  goldenseal  for  the  last 
three  years  have  ranged  from  $3  to  $4.25  a  pound,  and  these  prices 
are  thought  to  be  a  fair  basis  of  profit  in  goldenseal  culture, 
even  after  taking  into  consideration  the  rather  exacting  requirements 
of  the  plant  and  its  relatively  slow  progress  toward  commercial! 
maturity. 
Not  an  Easy  Crop  to  Grow. 
It  costs  about  $1500  an  acre,  exclusive  of  the  value  of  the 
land,  to  start  a  goldenseal  plantation.  This  includes  the  average 
cost  for  propagating  material,  but  makes  no  provision  for  irrigation 
during  dry  weather.  Of  course,  special  conditions,  such  as  local 
cost  of  labor,  lumber,  and  fertilizers',  will  influence  this  estimate. 
This  outlay  might  well  discourage  those  who  wish  to  cultivate  the 
plant  on  a  large  scale,  but  small  home  and  experimental  plantings 
may  usually  be  started  at  a  very  small  cost.  In  any  case  the  plan 
requires  special  care  and  suitable  conditions  at  all  stages  of  its 
development. 
Goldenseal  takes  considerable  time  to  develop.  If  it  is  grown 
from  seed  under  favorable  conditions  it  only  reaches  its  best  develop- 
ment for  market  after  about  five  years.  If  it  is  grown  from  root 
buds  or  by  division  of  the  rootstock,  it  reaches  its  best  development 
in  three  or  four  years.  Successful  growers  have  outputs  of  about 
2000  pounds  of  dried  root  per  acre  after  five  years  from  seed. 
Better  showings  might  be  made  by  well-equipped  small  growers. 
