Man Finds Whopping 1-Pound Ginseng Root
KITZMILLER,
Md. (AP) - A nearly one-pound wild ginseng root found
in western Maryland is a rarity that could be worth thousands
of dollars, according to a local dealer and market reports. The
lumpy tan root with multiple twisted arms was the biggest Roger
Welch has found in 45 years of ginseng hunting.
"Every
time I go out to dig for roots, I hope it's a big one." Welch,
67, of Kitzmiller, told the Cumberland Times-News Friday. "This
one, all the dealers said they'd never seen one this size. Only
one had even heard of one that big."
The
root weighed just under 16 ounces. Welch said it usually takes
40 to 60 average-sized roots to make a pound.
Prices
for dried wild roots - which weigh about one-third as much as
fresh roots - are over $400 a pound and could reach $600 this
season, said Larry Harding of Harding's Ginseng Farm, which cultivates
ginseng near Friendsville.
An
unusual root like Welch's could fetch a premium because ginseng's
purported healthful properties are believed to increase with the
plant's age, Harding said. He estimated Welch's root is 100 years
old.
"It
is an unusual find," Harding said. "You just don't run
across roots of that size."
He likened Welch's discovery to finding gold.
In
2005, a set of six wild ginseng roots up to 110 years old brought
nearly $120,000 at an auction in Seoul, South Korea, the Yonhap
news agency reported. The buyers were brothers who planned to
use the ginseng to help heal their mother's ailing knees.
Ginseng
is also believed to energy-boosting and stimulating effects.
Welch
said he hunts ginseng as a hobby and usually gives any money he
earns to his wife as a Christmas gift.
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