Panax quinquefolius
American Ginseng is deeply rooted in the North American Herbal tradition and has been a famous herb of commerce especially in trade with China for over 200 years. A member of the araliaceae (Ivy) family, and in the same genus as Asian/Korean Ginseng (Panax ginseng), these two plants are closely related in use. American Ginseng is considered much less stimulating and more “cooling”. In the early 1700s, a Jesuit priest Father Joseph Lafiteau, who had been a missionary in China, found ginseng growing near an Iroquois village in Canada. He wrote a treatise in 1717, which launched the plant into popularity and economic value, with one ounce selling for as high as three ounces of silver. Native Americans and Settlers throughout the east began digging ginseng to sell to French traders who shipped it to China. The legendary Daniel Boone was said to have made a fortune digging wild Ginseng. Factors such as total loss of habitat from logging and development and overharvesting have led to American Ginseng’s demise in the wild. It is considered Threatened or Endangered by the USDA in 10 states. There are many organic growers and conventional Ginseng farms in North America today.
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