The San Francisco call. [volume], September 01, 1907, Page 4, Image 4

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
GINSENG CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA
A NEW INDUSTRY OFFERING BIG PROFITS
NOlorg«r Is tie *scee«a£zl cs^cr*
ct glssecs In the rut* cr Cal!
tcrclM. a tToHt^%SLe*l ' t=*tter.
JLi UZ yctl c cirStra. ce*r ti«
cf,B»Et» Crzx. tnaee*Kfsl experl
taegtttfsa oa « Urs* sc«2« ten %x r«s:
tbt hitherto prrrEJUE^ l«pre«lca tiat
tsO t=J cUri&te Is. the OolfeaGate
»?• 59t £arcr»J>le far th» cessurcial
ttfOicctlsn d tM« TBlct-Me root.
T7fca.t Is gtesesff? "«I;eTe grows, arfi
liovt lrt» lrcr» !t. acd what for? are
CCMtJsr* trecserrJy «xci, t'.zzc tesa
p&rag\t!y ferr ttve heard cf It. as 3 a
wis.Cl«r CTXSber ttSi has asjlflea of
lt« Per ecswer to the Zrtl ctfery
we* tt» Custratleti herewitli- The
part ef ttm cl-se*r plast eosmerclally
X=pcrtast la th*>oot. Asia It la Talc Able
tiee&cs* Jcha Cilcasaan w«it« It Tanfl
Z±s cs«S it for area es a eererelgn
res»4y ter aTery in that ce'titfal
£e*h. !i te!r to; mere than that. <0,-
CCB.COO Chinese Implicitly believe that
Slaaens has magical virtues which be
stow Isnscslty from all diseases, ,so
that It la csed by the alck to get veil
tad hr the well to keep -well; *... This
er.crtr.cus inborn dercand for gtaaeng
'creates & market for It in the orient &s
ctaple aa the \u25a0en gar and cotton market;
yet Uiere are In the United State* to
day sot more than 40 acres of cclti
rat»a grinseng, producing probably
about cne- fourth of the quantity of
dried root at one time gathered In osr
forests for foreign shipment. |
Many varieties cf ginseng are • used,
but. broaAly classiied for convenience.
there are three kinds. The most high
ly esteemed- Is grown In Manchuria, the
«eeond quality In Korea, and thethirt.
or least expensive Frrade. in America.
Korean and Manchurian dry, ginseng
root retails for trozn S4O to SfOO ' per
p«uni3« and Is quite beyond the reach
of the Chinese masses, who are glad to
buy the cheaper, or; American, variety.
American exporters are at present pay-
Ing American .growers about 48 - per
pound for the best American cultivated.
' £ry ginseng root.
First grade, er Manchcrlan ginseng,
la the wild product of the forests. of
Manchuria, where it is gathered strict
ly under government supervision, the
death penalty being meted out as pun
ishment for the unauthorized digging
«f the root In Korea, however, the
plant is carefully cultivated, but strict
ly under government control ana su
pervision. There, e.t the end ; of the
growing season, agents of the govern
ment visit all ginseng growers to col
lect from them roots and seeds, paying
the natives, in orders on the Imperial
treasury, a. nominal sum . for the sea
eon's product. The grower has no op
tion but to deliver up his ginseng^for
n price ' fixed by the government, and
his receipts are not suSdent to make
the industry a popular ooe. After
\u25a0gathering the entire -crop the govern
ment ginseng s commissioner (who, a
few yea-rs since, was a keen Scotch
3nen) assorts, and dries, the roots and
disposes of them for- the 'proSt and
;beneflt of the Imperial coffers. The
meeds are carefully distributed. an\png
jthe^ native growers of ginseng^ each ;
•grower being required to account for
;the quantity left with him. The whole
industry is. In effect, a lucrative
fource of revenue to the government.
The Illustration of the Korean ginseng
fraxden showed a marked, contrast
between the primitive f methods : prac-'
tlced there by the ginseng grower and
those la use In California. As shown,
the Korean plants are covered ' with &
slanting, thatched roof of. straw about
four feet \u25a0\u25a0 high at the : open side, the '
whole supported on bamboo poles. This
roof protects v the " plant from ".rain and
mnn during . the ; growing ; season.' 'After
harvesting .and transplanting^ in . the
fall . the bamboo poles are ":
. allowing the straw roofs to,settle.di
rectly otpon the beds, for their protec
tion from the'frosts of .winter.;
Ta» ginseng : root resembles a small '
X^rssip in ' eize and color," bn 1 1 Is : much
more fretkr in shape; its likeness.-, to*
the hnmnn figure belngacharacterlstic
vrhich graetly enhances its ralue* in the I
celestial kingdom. , This ' resemblance
4%, in some Instances, truly grotesque,
pexticnlarlr in the case of • roots ' five ~
and six - years of ; age; at - which . stage *
of - growth - the" root is at its : beat , for
medicinal, purposes. - It ; Is. then -Cug^
waahed. > end elowly , dried , in « a warm
(not hot) ' atmosphere, when it" is ready ,:
for shipment. \Then ; property " and -?
thoroughly , dried it becomea \u25a0 hard.', like -;
far ginger, and is grated *or " ground
•cc» eafi steamed or Infused in a silver
••easel, to obtain .a j lotion : resembling \
veaJc tea. The 'celestial' who' can^af-'
torfl this panacea believes 'bin^self ixa
taane from* all : diseases,, and,; If -he is-
Cnandally nnable to enjoy the gihsens v
beverage, he at any, rate manages to se
ecre one good, grotesque .root, which he"
embelllEaes with gilt paper. 1 , and' treas
ures in hia household as a v lucky- tails-.:
teas.'- / -
In": Ijockharf s , rKedicai \ Mistionarv '?
la. China" an lnteresUnff description of
a Tidt to a Chinese merchant portrays'
graphically the high regard entertained '
In that country for ginseng.* "Open-*-"
Is* an outer box the ; merchant ->. re- \u25a0
tacrcd vcreral paper parcels which ap-
P*are4 to. £ll -the box,- but. under them
w*s a second box, or f perhaps - two
*=*11 : boxes, which when v taken v" out
showed the -bottom -of 1 the large -box
and' all of the" lnterrenlnr «pace ; fllled"
with tnore paper : parcels. These par/
eels, he said, contained* quicklime. .for
the purpose of absorbing any' moisture:
«L»d - of keeping the , boxes ', quite dry.'
the lime being packed In 'paper or the
take of cleanliness. . The email box f or.
gln6eng was lined with- sheet -/lead. :
The ' ginseng was : further Incased ": -in
•Ilk; wrappers and .was -kept: In little
silken > covered -, boxes. ', Taking, .. up ;; a
piece, he would request^ his ;vlsitor, not':
to brexthe on -It< or handle -It > THe
rrocli dilate on the inanymsrtts bf<the -
Crug- and the cures taat'tt 'had "".ef- '
"fected. - Thereover of the root, accord
ing: to; Its; quality,; was silk,' either em*
broldered- or plain, or cotton cloth or
About ; the" year 1716 -French . mlsslon
. tries' In Canada discovered -the native
.American : species ; of • ginseng, - which , is
. a member of the Aralla family. of plants
botanically * known V us ? panax c . quinque
folium. In, early. colonial days trailers
handled the root,^ buying It for. 40 and
50 cents, pcr 5 pound and selling lit in
China, for as fcie-h as JlO and $12, per.
pound. - Later. the. plant was discovered
growing wild ; all through the eastern
states and! this k somewhat : reduced the
price paid , for 1 1 by; the trader . to -^the
digger, as at that time only theforraer
knew of the value and great • demand
for ginseng in China. { ' Sinee •; its. com-;
: rsercial value lias -become 'more gen
erally known, the. wild Amerlcan;gin
seng has* been ruthlessly dug ;• at : all
seasons of the year,' and in consequence,
it is . rapidly decreasing - in ' quantity,"
while the output of the ginseng gardens
is not as yet increasing proportionately.
For a long^ period v after " the discov
ery; In this country, of ," the ' wild -root^
ginseng . was regarded -as : a , product * o£
the ; forest primeval,; *n<s the : possibility,
of Its culture \u25a0 was not- « entertained.
However, some years since, J enterprise
Ing growerß lnthe eastern states took
up "the L systematic of : ginseng
and" it soon" became V evident . that • this .
forest product ;- could 'be •- successfully
grown wherever ; and whenever - It ". was ".
intelligently * supplied with * Its natural
requirements in ; the :^ way of ' shade,
moisture - and r. soil : . In J fact.-;, the ', artl- -
flclaUy shaded ; »nd Intelligently , cul
tured 'ginseng- has grown 'far.-, better
tban'it; ever grewjwlld ; ln. the forests.
While j ginseng growing; is iby,- nol means :
common -In., the > eastern v; and f}nrfd-*
I western states,'." there & being ;. In ;•; the -
United ; States ; at ; present, as : . before
stated., probably." less than74o acres : all i
told devoted to It," yet quite'a. number of
growers -are '*\u25a0 this i lucrative
field, for;*, small! patch "spells ?a~ com-*
petence ; and ' an ; acre of \lt '• Is . equiva-
lent to a fortune not altogether"modest.
.. Perhaps i because -.-wild £ ginseng fcaa
never />been 7: discovered; 'west 's of '-Ithe -
; Rocky mountains, the \ belief ; was [com-
Boa th&t the culture of this roof wouM '
,noti pay..*on\the\-P»c!Coi coast, . and so :
this; lucrative ? fields for"; the"; lntensive '-
fanner has;: to .this \u25a0 time,'- been Juri^v
occupied..; in t Calif ofnlalvi within 2 arm's*!
\ length ralmost7of|th*e-orl en tair market f
and ; where. 7 John* Chlnaman«:*and-;hlS':
"ways that are dark' and .tricks that are"^
vain"*. Is ; much'; better^ known ; than - east '\u25a0\u25a0
of I the. Rocky.; mountains.' ', -' •*-- .' *
A* Ginseng Garden
But \u25a0 no w Tan extensive; and* thorough"-^
ly * successful v;-'< In ij ginseng \
'culture;.- int Calif omla \ has •the*?
way,; for *a \ new 1 industry^ among*: wide '%.
awake \u25a0 tillers .'of l the * sblTjWtio' believe?
that rural f life fcan^ be 7 shorn Jot fraudi §
iof^lU :; unremitting; toll y if ; intelligent
thought and " enterprising fendeavorj are
(employed/^ so "S all \u25a0% kra"| notf afraid
ito forsake the path > traveled ' by i their
[ forbears? wlll,"" f inf this i line as ; In ( every"
i other. 1 ; reap.' the] reward |of I patient fen
deavor I and i' open f~ey*»d * oour&ge. ' i
: J> The p Calif ornja>% dnseng
r » which .-{h as | been f so i •IsnaltyJ succeasful
.was | Inaugurated and | carried - out : un-
FderitheYdirecti personal ! aupervißlonTof
• Co lln f< H. i Mclsaac,! in fthef suburbs f of
[SantajCiTi^^but^atfewJhundredfymrils
: f roin^ the » j fascinating | shores SE of ;g; g the
\ bayjof I Monterey^ Here 3 aupilement
\u25a0 Ins : a ;, pleasant' little s horned the t tlnsf^t
* garden j; built s : last v fall;:? properly
shaded t and of a ' ample j slae to \. aecom-'
modate ;' approximately^; 10^00 C;:glnseng~
roots] and; 50,000 Jseed.tiThejroota plant-"
;ed % ranged \ in| age 5 f romli 1 tioj *1 years?
and 1 all^ these.l^togetherj withtthe I seeoV
have^ prospered \ most jsatisf.actbrtly.fgßi
3iOn|Marchll2llastltheis;lnsen«iseed^
lings at Ldly<3ale;were two Inches high,
i a! sizej not \ reached 5 inTeastern] and ? m!d
western gardens^ bef 6re| June § 15^":vAt j
, this iwrtUng \u25a0 th«>»eed s hea^Ss iareTrapidlyj
irjtp«ntos^to«aSbeauUfullJbrtght^red^
, ; whlle ithajleaves ) are,f alb'wly .- golns^dor
mant. t the plant; having had practlcallyj
;^ f ? e*Bo^^e * Bo^^5 tlji l a^ o ?^ftlj«jr99{;
£ continues fgrowing < In ; .the" I ground after
dthejniatvfiag/oftthelseed.^ During* the-
V months J of 3 Mayp and | June 5 this tf gar
fden |was \ by -three! eastern J gin- f
g seng_|: growers^- and « all Vg stated
thatj;?they3 had % n ever .Kf c een S| at-i morel
f, thrifty||and % promising «• ginseng "I'rar^i
g «en.lnor! on c \dol far | advanced i at \ that - ;
f season.-ffeTwof of gth'ese i growers ft were:;
§SlooMng^f or jalginsehg; location! in!Cali-";
f ornlaTi and \ if i Calif ornians Fdo's hot *b«-^
stir&theniselves^K outsiders
;." the : honor ; and* reward of ' beg^nnln 5 In '
gthelrlrQldstVafmostUucraUveftodtarCtTi
\u25a0aany;' features . aot^ absolutely neces
aary,^ as i the - root can';be . sncceasfuUy
grown .".under, similar' conditions ';\u25a0 more
inexpensively- affected. -The., beda aro
four feet, wide, extending ths---Tr?l^r
length* of ; the - garden." with - IS : ino*^
paths." The surface of 1 the beds.* dresy^d
with forest leaf mold." is some 13 inches
above v the ,5 level', of I the : path,' as > It ; is
essentlal^to'keep.thejroot well drained.
The": forest;: atmosphere^ is obtained by
a Vdqubla t lattt. shade 4 seven feet above
thVgr&und.Tarranged'on»frames which
can be/.opeyediand .closed at wilL As
this Us, . or i rather . was, an experimental
; garden, * Mr. IJlclsaac left ; nothing un
done' which "might, further success, but
.experience . has"' proven ' that • a^number
of: more' or, less 'expensive i features can
.-well bef dispensed iTrith. The' root will
• grow: liTi anyj well drained." light. \u25a0 loamy
soil* but; must ".be provided >. with a fo>-J
'est atmosphere: that is. arrangements
mutt be. made! for J protection 'from* the
dlrectVraysr-of .the sun. W good leaf
mold v mulclv;.covering* the \u25a0\u25a0 surface of
the 'ground and^a^lath : shade overhead,
properly V built,-- will •" do" this,rbut- the
'shade* provided! heed \u25a0* not o« Ja " swin'g
ing^one. '/Atmoderate'sinouMt of mois
ture; Is I required. * but " the - giants ? must
not^be permitted Ito suffer, from "wet
f eet." .to > avoid f which ?al a\to» 3 1 inch
dressing^of | good "forest v leaf ! mold^ is
essential; i as • this ; • keeps ; '- the^** ground
moist .without frequent watering.-^ Beds
and ; lattice i shade once 'arranged; sound
end desirable stock purchas-d, planted
and ""properly,, mulch ed.\very 1 f t tie regu - '
lar i attention - will] susce ' to 1 ee p • the
ground i_in r perfect lorder.vTfc*' ginseng
plant bearing seod.wh^n 2 years
old: when t, 4 and 5 years cf \ age each
plant annually prod ueee 'aa • average of
SO . seeds. , thus : providing i the];' grower
with*, the means ' of , enlarging ' his : gar
den. The small . area rec,u!r*<s far the
installation of a' profitable gins eng gar
den 'Is an \u25a0 especially note wo rth y . fact ' in
VV^ide Failure of Olive Crop
— r-HB failure of • America^ to : . b« the
; I \ largest • purchaser fof , ell ve oil
• .» from;, tte;^ Smyrna ;r«ri<»t|is.i«at^
.\u25a0 plained 'by "^Consul 'S. I*** Harrta, who
? has i submitted j the- followlnif /report en
: that Industry^ to Washington: -,
The v-fsilure;»of i America ! to b* the
nest largest'purchaser'of , olive "6ir*frontf
the Smyrna reglon.is explained i byfcon-^
" sul >E. 4 It. J Harris. \ who ', has •, sobaitted
'"-. the Xt ollowlng \ report ! - on that : industry .
fto jyfIBSHSMSBQp@9QBB
v : > Daring i the? past jyear < Great ; Britain..
'as usual, was. -the largest purchaser j
of f olive ; oil from * this ' dlatrict;» followed *
rby .^Germany,*- Russia. Austria, ' r Francs
''and ;Amerlca."S*iUnder,;nornial conditions "
'\u25a0', the United States .would' have -bees' the F
I; customer Rafter J-England. ? but*
5 the '.high % prices I ruling ": <m > th« « oai ke t\u25a0,
here the " American, customs
.authorities t to j class i the 'oil ? trader « the
2 name \of {table . oH." ; the . rate of /duty r on
ftwhicolmade^itUmpracticableifor/Amer
iXcan 3 manufacturers Ito * Import» the oil ;
* for manufacturing; purposes} ~V
; ; 1* The ii failure is of «;s the *• olive >; eropa c of ,
• Spaing .Tunis,* Crete^fAlgiers. and Gr *see. /
%xrhich? are ; th* chief , competitors of the
jEmyraaimarketiwaatheieaasoTofithe''
rpHceaf last Vyeari rising fiT^l- from"
:t, o.^ by* gross: f or » net. r /-•;; ,---, -^: : • -
-i\ The oiJy/illatrictaJwMci prndaceaioa ''i
The ffiaiu Francisco Sunday CalL
Cusf connection. 84x24 f eat being . aapl*
, for four SO foot beds. ] each i* feet wida,
divided by 1 S ; Inch paths '\u25a0 and * Isaviag
spies . for similar paths all sro«nd, Jh«
juter "edge. * "These f otrr beds oaa -b«
stocked -with seed.'k yearlings. tw» y«ar
-. and three year; plants.' reepectrvstyv for
approximately $150. From its own nat
ural'lncrease this garden will ta saraa.
"or «lght years • cover ono acre, and aa
acre .of ginseng Is easily worth
$10,000, while th« profitahla salsa) of th»
dry root will begin th* second or third
year, after its installation and iaarta*#
annually. - * Even ( a ' mxtch smaller gs- »
den would be a good bejrlsnlag.
Ah Unusual Habit
.. An interesting peculiarity of gtzttug
e;»<3 Is tbat It will', not germln»t» as
til eighteen' months after maturity. Hrv
Melsaao 1 has • experlstsated ' oxtasstrslT
along thla ' line with* a' vitir to chanjt
ing this ' supposed to b» fixed ' habit ef
the -plant, but is not yet ready .t» re
port any zneasnrssof ;«neoeaa.* a 1a ,tb.9~
main, however, be Is enthnalastia errar
the result of - his : California ginseng
experiment, as his plants h&v« aU
grown; thriftily. through a long; Ttaatm.
free from the various blights .and dis
eases prevailing in large msascr* t£
eastern gardens.! and the roots snav a
phenomenal season's ' growth.
- ' One : of ~ the ' 4 '* by TO ' foot beds at
Lily dale contains 700 threa year rlantT^
These* have made a - splendid 'growth
this season, and in' two ' years* wtll b«
ready • to narket. ,'Aftsr they ax* th«a
dug and "dried, they win wvigh. asti
matingf conservatively, 1 r sorts — * 1.4W
ounces,, or* 88 , pousfla. v * Usinr aa a baais *
the ; present 1 price lof this ooninsodlty.
$Btper poend. the 'roots, from", this bed
will sell "two, years henco for *$70o"ap
prbxlmately.' or, an average of $10 per
running : foot pf - bed four feet wide.
However, there la every reason : for b«
lleying that 'the price of ginseng win
steadily * advance.- : One of. the best of
these reasons "is. that the price of ths
root has been steadily advancing from
year to y 4 ear ever since w» have had
reliable statistics on' the subject.' In
18S2 the 'average ppricke k of the export
root was 64 cents per pound, v.-hils la
IS3O It was 53.55 per j pound. . showing
sn advance of ; $3.22 per pound for a
period of :24 s years, from 13«2 to 189*.
These figures all refer to the wild, dry
root, as up'to tb» latter date the cultl-*
vated product "did not ngure largely in
the ' statistical 'reports. V In' I?§4 th«
best'qualltsc^of dry root brought $7 p*r
pound, 1 "- showing }an \ Increase of $ 3.1 4
per pound from' l 53 6 to 1903. a* period
of seven. years. The Increasing price Is
no doubt due. to the decreasing quan-"
tlty. as statistics show that; the quan
tity :of wild root exported from this
country in -1836 was only, about on«
fourth as "much as the export of IS 52.
At; this : time the 1 market . price : of the
cultl vat cd ' dry » root ' for " export is from
$7 '- to"; $12 ,"per pound, depending upon
size and quality. ; Reliable
who have studied the conditions " gov
erning the plant -in China ara of the
opinion that enough ginseng cannot b«
produced in the next SO years t3 cass*
the* price to fall. As a matter of fact,
the \u25a0 known sources from which gin
seng can -be" gathered, fer" export pur
poses-are so limited 'that the price of
the - root must * advance "• for the next
forty years.-. 'Another point to favor. of
larger prospective ; profits for the - Pa- •
clflc^ coast ginseng grower is n»ame«s
to* market. Eastern growers sell* their,
dry .root: to 'exporters located ;ln~X«w
rYork. who ship ., the . ; commodity to,
China . at : a : great ; profit *to themselves, j
As soon as the industry becomes estab- I
llshed on the coast, the growers,- act- }
ing- collectively i as an association, can \u25a0
send a representative *to. the"gins*ng!
markets in* the~ orieat.' and thus dispos* :
cf • their roots ; directly to the best pos
sible \u25a0 advantsga.* learning at 'the. aast«
t!n«- from ; contact with . the « vrtmii
Chinese buyers, just what kind \u25a0of gln
seng.how dried and how paelc*d. 7 Joha
CMnamaa likes - best." There ts- no dan
ger ' of > orererowdin g in thla field. \u25ba Th*
tiller of ; the " soil . la „ consarvatrre—ln
novations appeal only to a tww.'T
; last year .were those 'of Etmyrn*.*, Mity
,lene.:Adramlt and AtTaly.'all of, which
are. in the immediate vicinity ot Emyr
' ns, but as i the ; combined eropa of . the««
places, including Smyrna, only amount
ed to 900.000 kintals, or X12.5e«.M9
~ pounds. ; prices . are likely to -be * mata
tsined .until ,th©* new "crop of • olives ' la
\ ready.^ -. It is- 1 therefore '- expected '-, thai
American / mannfacturera will r b« , un
able" to import any 5 oil I from ; this * dis
: trlct s for . Qanufacturtß* purposes be
fore then, on* aceooat ef :the ' import
duty, referred to.
v.Thej>livercroi> riptms hi latelaatama
I and crushing begins about \ the . end oi
OT *^f r * ,7^ c : t » aaatl «3r jproduced J ta
the Aidin .vilayet m lto* amoontid U
, about, 30Q.000, lOstAl*; cf ' wilch^aboS
.10; per cent i was; f ox^ ta-Vie 00. th« b*^
ance ibelneiutillz^ ? n-aaufacturtoi >
J'as^iS^^?- are 3 cx P«ted— th* . one
centi, higher ... than : that \u25a0of i the inaclaV^ «
fled olL^Lately also two factoriaaW, .
,of sclphar oil from oil cakas. bat thaaT
tt*Te aot'yetJbe«ttaV'woiiklaft *-*