MovieChat Forums > Appalachian Outlaws (2014) Discussion > So these idiots can't just farm ginseng ...

So these idiots can't just farm ginseng themselves?


That guy from Georgia takes the berries and replants them on the spot. Why wouldn't he just collect them and plant them where he wants? That's gotta be the most head shaking idiotic thing about this show.

"Hey, I guess I could just grow this stuff myself, but I'd rather trespass and look for it in the forest like a moron."

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... then there wouldn't be any fake "danger" and scripted drama...







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[deleted]

I've been wondering that. Why aren't these guys planting their own private gardens of this stuff? Surely somebody has figured out how to do that, even if the ginseng is particularly hard to grow. There's too much money in it not to! And you'd think they'd figure out how to grow stains of it that would yield huge roots to maximize their income.

And the thing is, ginseng has no medical value. I've been told that for years, once from a druggist who was answering my question of what ginseng would do for me if I took it. Sure, the Chinese put a high value on it and apparently are the buyers, so why not harvest it?

And why aren't the Chinese growing all they need themselves?

"Truth is its own evidence." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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No medical value? Sign me up!! Did you and your doctor discuss how much of the human body is still a mystery to modern science? Folk treatments have been around for thousands of years ... because some pharmaceutical company is making billions off of them? No, because they've been proven to work time & time again and without the awful side effects that medications cause.

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And the thing is, ginseng has no medical value. I've been told that for years, once from a druggist who was answering my question of what ginseng would do for me if I took it.


Pffft.... well of course a pharmacist will tell you that. Pharmacists are schooled in the use and sale of pharmaceutical drugs. If you have questions about an herb such as ginseng, ask an herbalist or similar such professional who is knowledgeable in alternative medicine, not a run-of-the-mill western medicine pill pushing pharmacist or doctor.

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well of course a pharmacist will tell you that. Pharmacists are schooled in the use and sale of pharmaceutical drugs.

Ok. But the reason I was asking him was because I had a bottle of ginseng pills I was wanting to get the price on. So since he stood to make a profit from me buying, I imagine if he wanted to make money off me, he'd praise it to the skies. I was on a health kick then. I was into a lot of supplements and thought ginseng might give me some benefit. I've taken supplements since then that contain some ginseng but can't determine whether it has done me any good.

"All necessary truth is its own evidence." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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No foul intended here. The point I was trying to make was that asking a pharmacist about benefits of herbs is like walking up to a football coach and asking for help with your swing so that you can improve your batting average. They're two very different games. Pharmacists and doctors are educated in modern western medicine practices, not herbalism and medicinal botany. You were asking the wrong sort of person for information about ginseng. A pharmacist won't tell you a bunch of stuff about an herb he knows little to nothing about, just to sell you a bottle, because they take an Hippocratic Oath just like doctors do. They only promote medicines they have sound knowledge in. A different sort of person could've given you a better answer. That's all I was trying to say. Good day to you.

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George Lassos the Moon
(¯`v´¯)
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¸.•´¸.•´¨) ¸.•*¨)
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Ginseng is notoriously hard to grow. The soil needs very specific acid content, the shade has to be just right, as well as temperatures and probably a score of other things. You can't simply plow a field and drop some seeds in.
When you add that to the fact that Ginseng roots are small and you weigh it after it is dry (Do you know much dry ginseng it takes to make 500 lbs????), you would need a huge area to grow in to even make money off of it.
Given all of the factors of soil content, shade, temperate over a large area, it would probably be more profitable to plant potatoes or something.

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But slipshadow, if that's accurate, why are these guys holding up handfuls of the stuff and saying how much it's worth? I mean, a handful is worth around $100, they say. If it's as valuable as they say, you'd think they would invest in greenhouses to provide ideal growing conditions. You state some pretty formidable reasons why growing it is difficult, but I still think they would find ways to get around them, if they do indeed depend on the crop for their yearly incomes.

"All necessary truth is its own evidence." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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holbrookp
They DON'T depend on the gensing for their yearly income. Right now they are hoping the show floats so it will give them an income. Most of them were deadbeats, and at least one of them had trouble holding down any kind of job for more than a few months.
The reason they don't build a "greenhouse" is because they don't have the money. The show promises them more money than they have ever seen in their life, or would ever hope to earn in their life.
It is FAKE. Pure and simple.

Take a look at this website. Here is a guy that grows it. Although he may be making a decent living at it, he's certainly not filthy rich.
http://www.hardingsginsengfarm.com/

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Most of them were deadbeats, and at least one of them had trouble holding down any kind of job for more than a few months.


It's sad... but this describes every loser with their own "Reality" show






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It takes 10 years before a root is valuable. Ginseng is commercially grown in Wisconsin, but the comercial version is not as valuable from what I understand.

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Ten years!? Is that after it's picked or from the time it begins to grow in the ground? These guys are shown picking the seeds and replanting them for next year's crop.

"All necessary truth is its own evidence." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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They are replanting it for future harvesting, but not the following year. I heard one of them saying the plant isn't considered "mature" until it's 50 years old. I don't know what they mean by mature--does the plant not produce berries until then, or what?

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I don't know, but I'm starting to think they're fudging the facts of ginseng cultivation as necessary to fit the story.

"All necessary truth is its own evidence." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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It's not 50 years.....it is more like 10 years.

Also, state law in WV requires that the seeds be buried after the plant is dug up. However, I'm sure that most probably ignore this law.

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That's like saying if I like coffee, why don't I just bury coffee beans in my backyard, or if I like to smoke, why don't I just grow tobacco on my backyard......Ginseng doesn't grow anywhere. It only grows in certain parts and under specific environmental conditions (altitudes, temperatures, tree cover, etc).

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The Chinese who buy the majority of Ginseng prefer wild over farm grown.

Believe it or not you can tell the difference between farm grown and wild. I have never dug ginseng and I am no expert but even somebody like me can still spot the difference. The only reason I know is because I did some research on the net on several different sites.

Here's another weird fact about ginseng. Wild grown in West Virgina is far more valuable than it is in my home state.

Someone here mentioned growing it in greenhouses. Ginseng only grows in shaded areas. Direct sun will kill it. People who farm it commercially have sun blocking nets set up above their plants.

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