Rates of Harvest and Compliance with Regulations in Natural Populations of American Ginseng (<i>Panax quinquefolius</i>L.)

McGraw, James B.; Souther, Sara; Lubbers, Anne E.

doi:10.3375/043.030.0207

Cited by 19 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…This analysis was later expanded to include 30 populations in seven states censused bi‐annually for several years (5–11 years, depending on the population). On an annual basis a mean of 15% of populations showed evidence of harvest, and a total of 1.3% of individual plants were confirmed harvested . Over the entire study period, 13 of 30 populations (43%) were harvested at some point, with six of those 13 being harvested multiple times.…”

Section: Demographymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Occasionally, harvest appears to be for personal consumption because a very small number of roots are dug despite many plants being found nearby. More typically, harvesters dig a larger proportion of what they find; however, some clearly leave behind a few large plants, as strongly recommended by stewardship‐oriented harvesters, while others remove virtually any plant they can find, including plants that are under the size limits set by regulations;(see the section below on compliance with regulations). One study equipped harvesters (trusted individuals with knowledge of ginseng identification and habitat preferences) with GPS units and directed them to flag as many plants as possible within a two‐hour period .…”

Section: Demographymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Research conducted on 30 natural populations of ginseng in seven states for 5–11 years looked specifically at rates of compliance with regulations set by state and federal governments . The authors documented violations in regard to season, location and plant size (20%, 65%, and 82% of events, respectively).…”

Section: Demographymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Within populations, the dispersion pattern is highly clumped, 25,26 with cluster size ranging greatly from isolated individuals with no plants in a 3 m radius to >100 plants within a 1 m 2 area. 27 For one typical large population (total N = 369) censused in 2011, there were 50 clusters with a mean cluster size of 7.38 plants/cluster (range; 1-28 plants). Genetic analyses have suggested such clusters to be, at least in part, family groupings resulting from limited seed dispersal.…”

Section: Geographic Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On an annual basis a mean of 15% of populations showed evidence of harvest, and a total of 1.3% of individual plants were confirmed harvested. 27 Over the entire study period, 13 of 30 populations (43%) were harvested at some point, with six of those 13 being harvested multiple times. The 30 populations, while spanning a large geographic range (New York south to Virginia, and west to Indiana and western Kentucky) and being considered representative, were also not truly random; for example, populations on private lands were underrepresented, and those in nature preserves were overrepresented.…”

Section: Seedling Ecologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecology and conservation of ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) in a changing world

McGraw

Lubbers

Voort

et al. 2013

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

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American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) is an uncommon to rare understory plant of the eastern deciduous forest. Harvesting to supply the Asian traditional medicine market made ginseng North America's most harvested wild plant for two centuries, eventually prompting a listing on CITES Appendix II. The prominence of this representative understory plant has led to its use as a phytometer to better understand how environmental changes are affecting many lesser-known species that constitute the diverse temperate flora of eastern North America. We review recent scientific findings concerning this remarkable phytometer species, identifying factors through its history of direct and indirect interactions with humans that have led to the current condition of the species. Harvest, deer browse, and climate change effects have been studied in detail, and all represent unique interacting threats to ginseng's long-term persistence. Finally, we synthesize our current understanding by portraying ginseng's existence in thousands of small populations, precariously poised to either escape or be drawn further toward extinction by the actions of our own species.

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Section: Demographymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Demographymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Demographymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Geographic Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Seedling Ecologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecology and conservation of ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) in a changing world

McGraw

Lubbers

Voort

et al. 2013

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

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Effects of altered climates on American ginseng population dynamics

et al. 2021

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As climates change, species with locally adapted populations may be particularly vulnerable as specialization narrows the range of conditions under which populations can persist. Populations adapted to local climate as well as other site‐specific characteristics like soils present challenges for inferring how changing climates affect fitness, as climatic and nonclimatic variables that constitute local conditions decouple. We conducted two transplant experiments involving American ginseng to test how climatic conditions affect performance while controlling for effects of other site characteristics. We first out‐planted populations from differing elevations to gardens arrayed along an elevation/climate gradient. We also grew maternal plants under temperatures corresponding to home‐site and future conditions (16.4–22.4°C), transplanting resultant progeny to two home‐sites at different elevations (400 m, 800 m). Source populations responded idiosyncratically to elevation reflecting how nonclimatic site characteristics strongly affected plant fitness. Germination rates declined for seeds from maternal plants exposed to warmer temperatures, which compounded with diminished seed production of maternal plants, suggested that population growth may decline rapidly as warm years become hotter and more frequent. Controlling for maternal temperature effects provided evidence that plants are adapted to home‐site conditions, both climatic and nonclimatic, with population growth rates for out‐planted populations ranging from below population replacement levels (λ = 0.58) to well above (λ = 1.33). Evidence of local adaptation to climatic and nonclimatic environmental components, in combination with negative fitness impacts of warming climates on offspring via maternal effects, suggests that changing climate may imperil ginseng and other similar understory species.

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“We ain't never stolen a plant”: Livelihoods, property, and illegal ginseng harvesting in the Appalachian forest commons

Farley

2022

Economic Anthropology

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In the southern Appalachian Mountains, wild American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) has been harvested for commercial sale for nearly 250 years. Ginseng is vulnerable to overexploitation but can be harvested according to regulations implemented to prevent a tragedy of the commons. Despite regulations, much ginseng is harvested illegally. Conservationists, supported by American property law, tend to believe illegal ginseng harvesters are thieves interested in quickly obtaining cash. This article argues instead that many illegal ginseng harvesters believe one cannot “steal” a wild plant. Many Appalachian forest users believe the owner of a ginseng root is the person who harvests it and not the landowner. Efforts to protect ginseng often rely on excluding harvesters from accessing lands historically considered to belong to the commons, which can also exclude them from an important strategy for earning income in a region where formal living‐wage jobs are scarce. This article adds complexity to understandings of the rural poor who make a living at the edges of the global capitalist system and contributes to a more nuanced understanding of poor rural Appalachians by exploring the reasons for ginseng harvesting, a behavior that otherwise might appear consistent with negative stereotypes of Appalachian culture.

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Rates of Harvest and Compliance with Regulations in Natural Populations of American Ginseng (Panax quinquefoliusL.)

Cited by 19 publications

References 16 publications

Ecology and conservation of ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) in a changing world

Ecology and conservation of ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) in a changing world

Effects of altered climates on American ginseng population dynamics

“We ain't never stolen a plant”: Livelihoods, property, and illegal ginseng harvesting in the Appalachian forest commons

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