Neither Wild nor Cultivated: American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) Seller Surveys Provide Insights into in situ Planting and Husbandry1

Burkhart, Eric P.; Nilson, Sarah E.; Pugh, Cathryn V.; Zuiderveen, Grady H.

doi:10.1007/s12231-021-09521-8

Cited by 9 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…The price gap between wild and cultivated orchids is consistent with other market surveys (Gale et al 2019). Although some plants, for example American ginseng, are more valuable to consumers when labelled as wild collected (Burkhart et al 2021). Cultivation is not always a viable conservation solution for overcollected wild plants (Liu et al 2019).…”

Section: Quantifying Salep Trade In Economic Value and Number Of Indi...supporting

confidence: 62%

Quantifying an online wildlife trade using a web crawler

et al. 2022

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Legally protected plants are illegally traded through online sales platforms and orchids are a significant component of this wildlife trade. This study focused on salep, a compound product made from wild collected orchid tubers from several genera—including Anacamptis, Dactylorhiza, Himantoglossum, Ophrys, Orchis, Serapias—whose harvest endangers some of the species used, despite their collection and sale being restricted by national and international legislation. Using a custom designed web crawler in combination with DNA barcoding of a subset of products over 18 months 1942 items of salep were detected as sold at a total value of US$ 37,775, estimated to be equivalent to 90,000 to 180,000 wild orchids being destructively harvested. Wild harvested tubers traded at a value of $0.21 and equivalent cultivated orchids have a market price of $16–28; cultivation is currently no viable alternative to wild harvesting. Using a web crawler on open trade sites contributes to knowledge on illegal wildlife trade, which can be used to address illegal plant trade at the national and international level.

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Section: Quantifying Salep Trade In Economic Value and Number Of Indi...supporting

confidence: 62%

Quantifying an online wildlife trade using a web crawler

et al. 2022

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“…It should be noted that the seed planted at our study site was sourced from field-cultivated commercial operations located in Quebec (Anna Plattner, personal communication). These commercial operations, concentrated in Ontario, Canada, and in the state of Wisconsin in the United States, constitute the source of much of the ginseng seed used in forest farming operations (Burkhart et al, 2021). There is debate over whether introducing non-local genetics-from plants cultivated in a highly controlled, industrial environment-could result in ginseng plantings maladapted to local conditions (Burkhart et al, 2021;Schlag & McIntosh, 2012;Schluter & Punja, 2002).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These commercial operations, concentrated in Ontario, Canada, and in the state of Wisconsin in the United States, constitute the source of much of the ginseng seed used in forest farming operations (Burkhart et al, 2021). There is debate over whether introducing non-local genetics-from plants cultivated in a highly controlled, industrial environment-could result in ginseng plantings maladapted to local conditions (Burkhart et al, 2021;Schlag & McIntosh, 2012;Schluter & Punja, 2002). It is possible that plants with local genetics may have responded differently to environmental variables on our research sites, but as many forest farmers source their seed from commercial operations we feel our results reflect the planting and plant sourcing conditions most representative of the current active forest farming community (Burkhart et al, 2021).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Importance of environmental factors on plantings of wild-simulated American Ginseng

2021

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American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) is an herbaceous perennial plant native to the forests of eastern North America with a long history of use and harvest, and with a significant international market. To supply international demand, the plant is grown in the USA and Canada under artificial shade cloth. However, wild and wild-appearing ginseng roots command prices up to 100 times greater than roots cultivated in a field: $550–2200 (US$ dry kg) vs. $20–70 (US$ dry kg). Growing ginseng in a forested environment using a “wild-simulated” forest farming approach, where growers introduce ginseng into a forested environment and then let it grow with little to no intervention, allows forest farmers to access these higher prices and meet international demand. As climate change shifts growing conditions globally, there will be increasing opportunities for the forest farming of American ginseng internationally. In this study, we examined the main drivers of ginseng growth and development in a wild-simulated ginseng forest farm. We measured the range of environmental conditions and built statistical models to examine which factors were most important for ginseng vigor. We found that the amount of sunlight, even under highly shaded conditions, was the most important driver of ginseng establishment on the landscape, as well as ginseng plant size and development. Prior research indicates that additional factors including soil nutrient levels, moisture, and texture are important for the survival, growth, and development of wild and planted American ginseng, but our study did not show significant patterns of importance at this site. Our findings suggest that integrating silvicultural techniques such as forest thinning may enhance the productivity of wild-simulated ginseng operations while providing additional forest-based income with minimal impact on natural forest ecosystems.

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“…HBE has demonstrated robust explanatory power in interpreting archaeological remains across a wide range of environmental and historical contexts in Appalachia, including substantial scholarship on Native Americans and the eastern agricultural complex in preindustrial Appalachia 24,79,80 . However, its application in contemporary Appalachia to date has been limited despite the continued prevalence of people foraging for wild foods such as mushrooms and ramps, 81‐83 as well as nontimber forest products such as ginseng and goldenseal 84,85 . These foraging activities are of strong interest to regional ethnobotanists, and this area of scholarship invites collaboration with HBE to build on general models of human behavior.…”

Section: Human Behavioral Ecology (Hbe)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…24,79,80 However, its application in contemporary Appalachia to date has been limited despite the continued prevalence of people foraging for wild foods such as mushrooms and ramps, [81][82][83] as well as nontimber forest products such as ginseng and goldenseal. 84,85 These foraging activities are of strong interest to regional ethnobotanists, and this area of scholarship invites collaboration with HBE to build on general models of human behavior. One example is a study by Burkhart and Jacobson, 84 which used economic modeling to study the profitability of transitioning from wild harvest to forest farming in eight native Appalachian herbs including highly valuable American ginseng (Panax quinqufolius L.)…”

Section: Human Behavioral Ecology (Hbe)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing evolutionary anthropology in local ecosystems

Palkovitz,

Lawler

2023

Evolutionary Anthropology

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The traditional regional focus of evolutionary anthropology—typically defined as places where hominin fossils, nonhuman primates, and non‐western populations reside—forms the basis of much evolutionary anthropological research. Using the highly biodiverse temperate region of Appalachia as an example, we suggest that evolutionary anthropologists have much to gain by stepping outside of this traditional geographic area. Being purposely provocative, we argue that evolutionary anthropologists might also benefit from conducting research in Appalachia and other temperate ecosystems. We briefly discuss multiple areas of study—including studies of seed dispersal, functional redundancy, convergent evolution, human behavioral ecology, and conservation—and how they can be considered within the purview of integrative and evolutionary anthropology. We also highlight broader impacts to higher education that evolutionary anthropologists can help promote by working in local ecosystems.

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Neither Wild nor Cultivated: American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) Seller Surveys Provide Insights into in situ Planting and Husbandry1

Cited by 9 publications

References 36 publications

Quantifying an online wildlife trade using a web crawler

Quantifying an online wildlife trade using a web crawler

Importance of environmental factors on plantings of wild-simulated American Ginseng

Developing evolutionary anthropology in local ecosystems

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