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Panax quinquefolius



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Kemper Code:  A253

Common Name: American ginseng
Zone: 4 to 8
Plant Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Araliaceae
Missouri Native: Yes
Native Range: Eastern North America
Height: 0.75 to 1.5 feet
Spread: 0.75 to 1 foot
Bloom Time: June - July  
Bloom Color: Yellowish-green to greenish-white
Sun: Part shade to full shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low


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Plant Culture and Characteristics

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  Uses:       Wildlife:   Flowers:   Leaves:   Fruit:
Hedge Suitable as annual Attracts birds Has showy flowers Leaves colorful Has showy fruit
Shade tree Culinary herb Attracts Has fragrant flowers Leaves fragrant Fruit edible
Street tree Vegetable   hummingbirds Flowers not showy Good fall color   Other:
Flowering tree Water garden plant Attracts Good cut flower Evergreen Winter interest
Ground cover Will naturalize   butterflies Good dried flower     Thorns or spines

General Culture:

Best grown in moist, fertile, organically rich, medium moisture soils in part shade to full shade. Soils should not be allowed to dry out. DO NOT DIG PLANTS FROM THE WILD. This species is endangered.

Noteworthy Characteristics:

American ginseng is native to but now rare in Missouri where it most frequently occurs on north-facing wooded slopes in the eastern Ozark region (Steyermark). It is an erect perennial growing to 10-15" tall. Each plant has three long-stalked, horse-chestnut-like, compound leaves. Each leaf has 5 (infrequently 3) toothed, pointed, elliptic-obovate leaflets to 5" long. A solitary umbel of small yellowish-green to greenish-white flowers arises on a long stalk from the central leaf axil in late spring to early summer. Flowers are mildly fragrant but not particularly showy. Each flower umbel gives way to a cluster of red berries. Roots are thick, aromatic and swollen in the middle. Roots of the native Chinese species (Panax ginseng) have been used medicinally in China for centuries. As demand for ginseng roots in China began to exceed supply, export of this American species to China began to occur. American ginseng has unfortunately become endangered or in some cases extinct in the wild in most of its original eastern to Midwestern North American range due to over-harvesting of its roots. American ginseng is now sometimes commercially grown in the U. S. for export.

Problems:

No serious insect or disease problems.

Uses:

An interesting and increasingly rare native plant for shade areas. Best in herb gardens, native plant gardens, woodland gardens or shade gardens. Generally not grown in borders due to lack of sufficient ornamental interest.

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