The History of Ginseng American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius,
L.) is a perennial herb native to the deciduous forests of the
eastern United States. Wild ginseng once thrived along most of
the nation's eastern seaboard, from Maine to Alabama and west to
Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. It still grows wild, but it
was over-harvested in the mid-1970s and was subsequently defined
as an endangered species. Currently, 18 states issue licenses to
export it. In Wisconsin and several other states where ginseng
is cultivated, a permit is not required to export artificially
propagated ginseng. Ginseng was one of the earliest marketable
herbs to be harvested in this country. Wild ginseng was one of
Minnesota's first major exports. In 1860, more than 120 tons of
dried ginseng roots were shipped from the state to China.
American ginseng is similar to Asian ginseng, Panax ginseng, L.,
which grows wild in Northern Manchuria and has been harvested
there for thousands of years. Ginseng is prized in the Orient
for its purport