Can ginseng be grown at home?

Already several centuries ago, people began to think about how to cultivate. The first attempts to cultivate ginseng were made in the Far East. Currently, the root of life is cultivated even in central Russia. The success of ginseng cultivation in central Russia is primarily determined by the creation of the desired microclimate, as well as light shading.

It is worth noting that with sharp fluctuations in air humidity, the plant becomes sick and may even die, therefore, the humidity must be maintained within 70-80%. To achieve this, beds with ginseng are placed between the trees, and sawdust is laid around them, which are watered several times a day in dry weather.

Soil for growing ginseng.

To grow ginseng, use the following soil composition: 2 parts of loose earth, 1 part of deciduous humus, 1/2 part of wood dust and 1/2 part of coarse sand. Add 2 tablespoons of wood ash to each bucket of the mixture. Rotted manure humus (5-6 kg per 1 m2) or peat-humus compost can be added to the above composition. To prepare deciduous humus, fallen leaves are collected in a heap in autumn, poured abundantly with water and periodically stirred to accelerate the decomposition process. Three times over the summer, fertilizers enriched with trace elements for indoor flowers are added to the humus.
Deciduous humus mixed with wood dust is used as the main part of the topsoil when laying ginseng beds.

Preparing the soil for planting ginseng.

Ginseng beds, no more than 1.2 m wide, are located from east to west. Over the entire area of ​​the bed, a layer of earth is taken out to a depth of 20 cm, then the bottom is leveled, drainage is made (with a layer of 5-7 cm) from river gravel or coarse sand, and the beds are filled with the prepared soil mixture. The surface of the bed is leveled. 10-14 days after filling the beds with a soil mixture, preventive disinfection of the soil is carried out with a solution of 40% formalin in a ratio of 1: 100 (for 1 liter of 40% formalin, 100 liters of water). The consumption rate of the solution should not exceed 8 liters per 1 m2 of the garden. Soil cultivation is carried out from an ordinary watering can.

Planting ginseng.

Ginseng is propagated by seeds only. The latter can be purchased from amateurs or ordered at enterprises that grow this plant. The seeds are harvested when the fruit is fully ripe. To separate the seeds from the pulp, the fruits are mixed with wet, pre-calcined sand, kept for 3-4 days, then washed, mixed again with sand and left for 24 hours. After that, the mixture is sieved through a sieve, the holes of which are slightly smaller than the seeds.

The seeds prepared in this way are again mixed with sand (for 1 part of seeds 3-4 parts of sand), poured into a wooden box, closed with a wooden lid and buried in the ground to a depth of 30-40 cm. Once a month, the mixture is moistened.
In the above mode, the seeds are kept for 1 year. Stratified seeds are planted at the end of August. In the spring of next year, they usually sprout.
Before sowing, the seeds are disinfected for 15 minutes in a 0.5% solution of potassium permanganate, and then ventilated in the shade for several hours.
For planting ginseng, an ordinary method is used. The rows are placed across the beds with row spacing of 10 cm. Seeds are planted in rows at a distance of 5-7 cm from one another, embedded in the soil to a depth of 5 cm.
Immediately after planting, the beds are watered and mulched with humus with a layer of 1-3 cm.

Care of crops and plantings of ginseng.

Before the onset of cold weather, the beds on which ginseng seeds are sown are covered with fallen leaves with a layer of 10 cm or mulched with peat crumbs with a layer of 2-4 cm.
In the spring, about a week before the appearance of the first shoots, the insulating layer is removed, and shade canopies are installed over the beds, for the manufacture of which wooden shields with 2-centimeter gaps are used. Shields are made of boards 150-170 long, 12-15 wide and 1-1.5 cm thick. Care for seedlings consists in periodic weeding, loosening and moistening of the soil. 10 days after the emergence of seedlings, a preventive treatment of plants is carried out with a 0.01% solution of potassium permanganate (2 liters per 1 m2). A week later, re-treatment is done with a 0.3% solution of potassium permanganate (1 liter per 1 m2), and a month later the plants are sprayed again (1 liter of a 0.5% solution of potassium permanganate per 1 m2 of plantings).

Transplantation of ginseng seedlings is carried out in early October, after the aerial part of the plant has dried. The dug roots are placed in rows in an enamel container, the bottom of which is lined with a damp cloth or moss. Cover the roots with a damp cloth. The seedlings are planted on the same day. First, the roots are kept for 3-5 minutes in a 0.5% solution of potassium permanganate, then washed with clean cold water and dried in the shade for 15 minutes.
Prepared roots are planted with a slight slope in the grooves. The distance between the grooves should be at least 40, and between the plants - at least 20 cm.
The planting depth of ginseng should be such that the wintering bud is 4-5 cm from the soil surface. After planting the plants, the grooves are covered with soil mixture, slightly compacted, watered and covered with a 2-centimeter layer of leaf humus. After the onset of cold weather, the plantings are insulated, as a rule, with a 7-10 cm layer of sawdust. At the end of May, the plants sprout. Further care for ginseng consists in periodic watering, weeding and loosening of the soil, as well as annual preventive treatment of plants with a solution of potassium permanganate.

How to grow ginseng at home

Ginseng has long been used in medicine around the world. The plant gained such popularity due to its healing properties. Every year, scientists are discovering more and more possibilities for treating a wide variety of diseases with the help of the "root of life", as ginseng is also called. After all, it is the root of the plant that is mainly used.

It should be noted that ginseng is widely used in both traditional and folk medicine. Today, you can buy a variety of ginseng products at pharmacies. However, many people choose to grow the "root of life" on their own.

Growing knowledge and experience

Before you start, you must first learn how to grow ginseng at home.

• The first step is to choose a site for planting. It is desirable that it be slightly sloped. This is necessary in order for rain or melt water to be able to drain from the site. After all, the plant is very sensitive to stagnation of water, even the most short-lived.
• But it is worth considering that it does not like overdried land either. Also, the soil must be protected from winds.
• It is important to understand that, despite the fact that ginseng does not like direct sunlight, it is better if 25% of the sun's rays break through the deciduous shelter. You can install special shields to create shadow.
• You can plant ginseng from seeds that have undergone the stratification procedure, but it is still better to purchase seedlings for home cultivation, in which case you will have a better chance that the plant will take root and develop correctly.

Crop care

• Before the onset of cold weather, it is necessary to cover the beds with planted ginseng seeds with fallen leaves, the layer height should be about 10 centimeters.
• When a positive temperature is established, it is necessary to remove this protective layer before the first shoots begin to appear.
• 10 days after the shoots appear, it is necessary to perform preventive treatment, for this, 0.01% manganese-sour potassium is used. Processing is carried out at the rate of 2 liters. per 1 m2.
• A week later, it is necessary to perform a second treatment using a 0.3% solution of the same substance, based on 1 liter. for 1m2. One month later, a third treatment is carried out with the same substance, but with a 0.5% concentration at the rate of 1 liter. for 1m2.
• The main care for the emerging seedlings is their weeding, as well as periodic moistening.
• The transplant should be carried out in the fall, when the leaves of the plant are dry. The dug roots must be placed in an enamel container, the bottom of which must first be covered with a damp cloth, on top of the laid roots, also put a damp cloth. They should be planted on the same day.

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Ginseng root originates from the Far East. It has incredible healing properties and is widely used in medicine. A large number of drugs have been created on its basis. Nowadays, the cost of one gram of it is the same as a gram of gold from dealers.

This plant can be easily grown at home. Its root will have a marketable appearance in six years, but, of course, its properties will yield to the wild one. Only this species remains the most valuable, but gradually begins to disappear, very little of it remains in natural conditions.

Common ginseng loves diffused light, so it is grown in a country house or in a personal plot under the protection of a PVC film. To eliminate the greenhouse effect, it is installed above the plant one and a half meters. In the future, it will also serve as protection against rain flooding and damage from hail. Ginseng is a shade loving plant. You will not be able to grow it in a sunny area, since the leaves will not be able to cool well, but will simply curl and burn.

Ginseng.

To grow ginseng, you need good and well-drained soil that is rich in nutrients. It includes humus, sand, wood ash, peat and humus layer of the earth. Therefore, your task will be to provide the plant with such. When preparing the necessary soil in the country, it is still possible to add sawdust to it.

Create the beds

By following simple rules based on shading and good drainage, it is not difficult to grow ginseng. The choice of accommodation must be approached with all responsibility. The most important condition is that the place should not be flooded with rains. Panax ginseng loves moisture, but retaining it in the soil can harm it. To avoid this, a trench is dug in the garden for drainage. Its depth depends on the climatic conditions of the area and ranges from 30 to 60 centimeters.

At the very bottom we place sand or expanded clay, you can also use crushed stone or pieces of brick. If your summer cottage is located on an area with sandy or sandy loam soil, then it will be more convenient to grow ginseng, you do not need a drainage trench. Such soil does not retain moisture. In these cases, the bed is simply raised above the ground by 30-40 centimeters. Its width is made up to one and a half meters in size. This is necessary in order to provide an approach to it from different sides for the purpose of watering and weeding. The garden bed is covered with a frame. On the sides it is not closed. It is important that the ginseng is well ventilated.

Planting a plant to get seeds

Before planting ginseng, the soil is well moistened. The roots for disinfection are processed in potassium permanganate. The area of ​​the beds in the country is made quite large. It is best to plant two-year-old seedlings, but if there is no way to purchase it, then one-year and three-year-old will do.The procedure is carried out in the middle of autumn. The beds must be covered. Dry foliage works well for shelter. At the end of the procedure, watering is mandatory.

Night frosts are possible in late spring. During them, peduncles of adult ginseng very often die. If they are not covered in a timely manner with foil, then obtaining seeds this year will remain in question.

Taking care of ginseng is not difficult. It is important to water once a week in hot weather. At other times, it is carried out less often. Mulching is useful. The best material for this will be spruce needles. She will scare away uninvited pests. Usually a layer of mulch of half a centimeter will be sufficient.

Only after four years can ginseng be grown to bear fruit. Thanks to them, you can further multiply it. Ginseng bloom occurs in June and lasts for two weeks. Unremarkable flowers have a faint but very pleasant aroma. The fruits begin to ripen in August. During this period, they must be monitored, as they can be eaten by mice.

The fruits that have been harvested are ground by hand. Thus, the seeds are separated from the pulp and washed.

Propagation using seeds

Ginseng can only be grown using seeds. Reproduction in other ways does not provide such an opportunity. There can be only one problem - seeds that are sown immediately after harvest germinate only after one and a half or two years.

Everything happens because until the embryo of seeds finishes its development, they will not begin to germinate. For this to happen, the seeds must be kept in warm conditions at a temperature of 15 to 22 degrees for about five months. As soon as the development is over, the seeds of the seeds will open slightly.

Growing seedlings

Before growing seedlings, the seeds are removed from the pulp, soaked for three days and disinfected in potassium permanganate. They are sown in mid-autumn or in spring in April in rows to a depth of five centimeters. Fall asleep with humus mixed with humus and watered well. Before shoots appear, the beds in the country do not darken.

This must be done immediately after the first shoots appear. Seedling care consists in loosening so that the ground around it does not crust after rains or watering, as well as harvesting weeds. For the winter, ginseng is harvested from the beds. If you notice that the ginseng foliage begins to turn yellow, then watering stops for two weeks. This time is enough for the soil to be well removed from the roots. The seedlings are dug up and, sorting, placed in special containers. Each layer is sprinkled and moistened. Then the seedlings are placed in the basement. There it is stored until the next planting.

Disease protection

All garden diseases can harm ginseng. Pests will be no exception. For preventive purposes, the plant is treated with potassium permanganate and Bordeaux mixture. And during the growing season, it is advisable to carry out up to three such sprays.

The pests that most commonly attack ginseng are moles, mice, May beetle larvae, wireworms, aphids and slugs. It is not recommended to carry out treatment with chemical solutions. It is best to do with infusions of garlic, wormwood, pine needles and marigolds to fight.

Root storage

After six years, when the root acquires the highest value, it is dug up. All soil residues are removed under water with a brush. Weigh it.

Fresh ginseng root keeps well in the refrigerator. He can stay there for several weeks. If you require long-term storage, then for this purpose it is dried at a temperature not exceeding 60 degrees. The large roots are cut, and the small ones are dried as a whole. At home, you can use a Russian oven or electric dryer for drying.

The roots are used in two forms: fresh and dried. If you want to withstand a fresh root longer, then in a home cellar they should be laid in damp moss.So he will lie longer.

Growing ginseng

To cheer up novice ginseng growers, it must be said that the idea of ​​the extreme fragility and fastidiousness of ginseng is not true. Despite its relict nature, it has sufficient adaptability, ecological and physiological plasticity. This is evidenced by the successful growing ginseng in various parts of the country: in the Caucasus, Kuban, Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltic States, St. Petersburg, in the central zone of Russia, Alma-Ata and, finally, in the Urals and Siberia.

On the other hand, it is necessary to warn against excessive optimism and self-confidence, even if they are supported by solid knowledge and experience of crop production. Ginseng, despite being well studied, often surprises experienced professionals.

The article details the biology of this plant and the methods of its cultivation so that ginseng growers can themselves, using the information obtained, creatively solve numerous problems caused by local conditions. No amount of advice can foresee everything.

Growing ginseng in the garden and in the vegetable garden

The most common way to grow ginseng on private households is to grow it in backyards, vegetable gardens, and private plots under sheds.

The plantation site should be protected from the prevailing winds in the area and have a slight slope for the flow of melt and storm water. It is necessary to take into account that the ridges will be located from east to west. You can partially use shading from trees or the wall of the house. It is better to avoid places with a shallow groundwater table, otherwise you will have to make a powerful drainage cushion and high ridges on them.

When marking a site for growing ginseng, consider the following. It is better to place a nursery (nursery) with annual plants separately from the plantation with adult roots in order to protect the former from diseases. The plantation will have 5 beds for plants of each year of life, starting from the second, and a reserve ridge. You do not need to do all the ridges at once, since some will be needed only after a few years, but you need to provide a place for them. The maximum allowable strip width of 120 cm, as on American plantations, makes it possible to handle plants in the middle of the ridge without any special difficulties. When the roots are located after 20 cm, 6 longitudinal rows are planted on such a strip. A ridge for 96 plants will have a length of 320 cm, in general, the length can be arbitrary. The distance between the ridges when planting ginseng depends on the type of canopy.

When constructing confining structures of the Korean type, when a canopy layer is located above each strip, there should be a distance of 100 cm between the ridges. With the American system, which uses a high common canopy over several beds, the width of the gaps can be 40-50 cm. This saves land area , which is very important for modern small estates.

The best soils for growing ginseng

In Russia, it is difficult to find natural soils that could be used without changes for the cultivation of ginseng. Root cultivation in individual farms on relatively small plots allows the use of artificial soil. According to amateurs, there are a lot of its variants, and grows well for any ginseng. Soil composition: pure wood dust without additives; forest land from mixed forests; leaf humus; various mixtures containing peat chips; compost.

The soil can be prepared just before planting the ginseng by using well-decomposed sieved ingredients. The basis is forest land, collected in the forest, where spruces, cedars, pines, birches, maples, rowan trees grow, with a herbaceous cover of ferns, nettles.Use a shallow layer directly under the litter. To two volumetric parts of this land add one part of wood dust from deadwood or stumps of coniferous trees, one part of leaf humus, preferably broad-leaved trees (linden, maple, hazel, birch), one part of sifted coniferous litter, 1/4 part of woody grass ash ...

For seed beds, they take poorer soil with half of the indicated content of dust, leaf humus and litter. The presence in the soil of non-decomposed organic residues, poorly rotted manure, humus greatly increases the lodging capacity of seedlings. The ongoing decomposition processes activate the pathogenic microflora and cause a large loss of seedlings. The same is observed on very, oily soils. Therefore, in nurseries, the land should be relatively poor. To do this, before introducing the soil into the seed ridges, a double volume of granite gruss with particles of 3-5 mm is added to it. On the plantation, an equal or half volume of grit, brown coal boiler slag must be added to the soil mixture.

It is best to prepare the soil for growing ginseng in advance. In the fall, a measure of forest land, a measure of a withered leaf and dry grass (fern, nettle), a measure of wood dust or old sawdust, a measure of needles, a measure of rotted cow dung, 1/2 measure of ash are poured into a reserve bed on a plantation or in a separate pile. The contents are mixed in the fall and next summer once a month, watered with warm water and occasionally with a weak solution of bird droppings. During the year, the mixture decomposes and by autumn it becomes suitable for use, then it is brought into the ridges, if it was in the pile. Two weeks before planting the plants, it must be etched with a formalin solution (20 ml per liter of water). Watering should be done at the rate of 10 liters per square meter of area. After watering, cover with polyethylene for 3-4 days to soak, and then ventilate for a week, stirring the soil. Instead of formalin, you can use potassium permanganate at a concentration of 0.5%.

When preparing large plantations, when the use of artificial land is impossible, they develop garden soil, keeping it from the fall of the year under black steam after the obligatory introduction of organic substrates - leaf humus and wood dust. It is possible to use mineral fertilizers - 40-45 g / m2 of superphosphate, ash. During the summer, the soil is loosened monthly, watered with slurry or chicken droppings. It is imperative to pickle with formalin or potassium permanganate before planting ginseng or sowing seeds, as well as adding gruss or slag.

In the prepared soil for growing ginseng, you need to check the acidity. For this, half a glass of soil is poured with an equal volume of boiled (preferably distilled) water, mixed and defended until the top layer becomes transparent. Then the water is poured through a funnel with cotton wool into a test tube and given to the laboratory to measure the concentration of hydrogen ions on a pH meter. You can do the analysis at home by placing a drop of liquid on a strip of universal test paper and comparing the Color of the wetted area with the supplied reference. The optimum pH response should be in the range of 5.7-6.5. With a more acidic reaction (low values), fluff lime should be added to the soil, with alkaline - increase the content of dust, decomposition products of coniferous litter.

Earthworms have a favorable effect on the structure of the soil, therefore, their habitation in beds with adult ginseng plants should be welcomed by launching them into the soil after formalin has been weathered.

Growing ginseng seedlings in a nursery

Seed beds should be 15 cm high, 100 cm wide and of arbitrary length. In the parent soil, a trench of appropriate dimensions and a depth of 10 cm is made oriented from west to east, which is fenced with boards, vertical slate, or asbestos-cement slabs.Crushed stone, pebbles or grit are laid at the bottom for drainage. The prepared soil mixture for the cultivation of ginseng is poured into a bed and lightly tamped.

Stratified (with opened seeds) seeds before sowing are kept in a 0.25% solution of potassium permanganate for 15 minutes and dried for 15-20 minutes. With the help of a marker or manually, holes or grooves are made in the soil with a depth of 3.5 cm.Sow in a square, staggered manner or in rows, the feeding area should be at least 4 × 4 cm.Ginseng seeds are sealed with fine gruss or coarse sand with a particle size of 1.4 —2.1 mm, obtained with suitable sieves. The less the sieves (upper and lower) differ in the diameter of the cells, the more homogeneous the sifted substrate is obtained, the more free-flowing it is and the easier it is for delicate seedlings to break through it. Sprinkling the sown seeds not with soil, but with sand promotes better air access to the roots and reduces the damage to the petioles by Fusarium.

After sowing, it is advisable to mulch the surface of the ridges with peat crumbs, needles, sawdust with a layer of 2 cm to retain moisture and smooth out temperature fluctuations. It is not recommended to use fresh sawdust of coniferous trees. When sowing in autumn, the soil should be covered first with dry leaves with a layer of 7-10 cm to protect it from freezing, and then with coniferous spruce branches that trap snow. Instead of a sheet, you can use sawdust poured onto thick paper. The protruding sides of the beds on the side must be insulated by sprinkling with sawdust, slag, furnace ash. In this form, the ridges can be safely left to winter, taking measures against rodents. In winter, it is useful to cover the ridges with snow, removing excess snow after April 10, when the likelihood of severe frosts decreases.

I cannot recommend the sowing of unprepared seeds in the soil of nurseries for 20-month stratification in ridges, practiced by many ginseng growers. This technique is associated, firstly, with the need to take care of the "empty" ridges over the next year - to cover, weed, moisturize. Secondly, the seeds go out of control for a long time, presenting surprises to the grower in the form of missing, rare or mosaic seedlings. Fall sowing with stratified seeds is preferred when confidence in good seedling will increase in spring.

In the spring, after the snow melts, the spruce branches must be removed, and at the end of April, the leaf cover must also be removed. In the future, the agrotechnology for growing ginseng is identical for the beds with autumn and spring crops. Install risers with beams and cover them with solid wooden canopies on April 15-20. Seedlings develop best in low light conditions: 3-5% of the maximum solar luminous flux. It is these conditions that are provided by low solid wooden shields, proven by many years of practice. Excessive illumination of plants during the growing season is evidenced by the shape of the leaves "boat": thus the seedlings themselves limit the amount of light falling on them and give an alarm signal to the inattentive grower.

Germinating seeds and seedlings suffer greatly from excess moisture, therefore, after thawing the soil, the surface is moistened with the minimum required amount of water (2-3 liters per m2) so that only the soil does not dry out. Laboratory experiments have shown that the highest percentage of seedlings is observed when soil moisture is 5%. The optimum temperature for seed germination is + 13 ... + 15 ° С.

In the climatic conditions of Novosibirsk, seedlings from seeds of autumn sowing appear on May 20-25, with spring sowing - after 10-20 days from the day of planting, but not earlier than May 20.

Plant care consists of watering, weeding, and disease control. It is very important to maintain high air humidity under the canopy, which is achieved by frequent watering of areas near the ridges, covered with slag or sawdust. Inadmissibly close location of weeds.In case of probable frost, the space under the canopies is covered with plastic wrap. The end of the growing season occurs in the last decade of September. The duration of the standing of the plants is about 130 days. The cold weather, which is common in Siberia in May - early June, has an unfavorable effect on the growing shoots. Under these conditions, the leaves have a small area, which also affects the size of the root system.

It is better to dig out ginseng seedlings immediately after the shoots die off in the fall, by hand, carefully tearing off the petioles and not allowing the roots to dry out (cover with a damp cloth). The weight of the roots with such a cultivation system is 350-450 mg. Part of the seedlings can be left in the garden for the second year and used next fall for planting instead of dead peers. The dug out seedlings should be planted on the same day, in the place of long-term growth, sorted by size into three groups.

If there was no plant waste in the garden due to diseases, then it can be reused after dressing with potassium permanganate for sowing seeds, but in total no more than two years. After this, the soil must be replaced. It is allowed to be sifted to extract and reuse granite particles.

In conclusion, it should be said that the first year of ginseng's life (or the first two years) is decisive in determining further growth rates. As a rule, the root mass accumulated during the growing season determines the differentiation of the shoot, and the leaf area, and the number of stems, flowers, fruits in a plant during the next year.

Growing adult ginseng plants

Ridges on a plantation for growing ginseng are made in the same way as in a nursery. The height of the soil layer on them should be 20-25 cm. The deepening in the ground is filled with drainage material 7-10 cm thick, the fringe is made of improvised material (slab, slate), then the "box" is covered with soil prepared in advance. First, coarse sand or grit is poured into the holes located at a distance of 20 cm from each other, and then the root is laid with an inclination from the vertical of 45-60 °. The resting bud should be at a depth of 4-5 cm. The body of the root is sprinkled with sand again, and the neck with soil. The earth is compacted and moistened, and before the onset of frost, it is covered with a dry leaf with a layer of up to 10 cm, then also with coniferous spruce branches and sprinkled with snow. The sides of the ridge are insulated with some loose material, such as sawdust.

Shields can be crafted in winter. By this time, you have probably already decided on what model you will make the enclosure structures - according to Korean (Far Eastern) or North American. The latter type requires a large consumption of edged lumber (laths), since a large area is covered, including vertical side walls. The first method is the most common.

Ginseng growers are very creative to make the most of local opportunities. The main condition is to ensure uniform shading of the ridges, so that the amount of incident light is 35-40% of the total sunlight. For this, screens are built from a grid, along which growing vines can curl. Sometimes a rare crate of awnings is covered with hay or grass, tree branches. Use gauze or thick polyethylene folded in several layers. Some craftsmen build shields from slats, which, according to the principle of blinds, can be opened, increasing the amount of light on cloudy days with low clouds.

Excessive lighting leads to burns on the leaves and premature death of the shoots. Laboratory and field experiments have shown that ginseng responds favorably to an increase in illumination of up to 50%. In this case, the root and aerial systems grow faster, photosynthesis proceeds more intensively, the leaf area and thickness, the number of stomata in them and the transpiration of water are larger. A further increase in illumination, although it does not lead to the appearance of burns, has a depressing effect on plants.It also affects ginseng and strong shading (3-5% of full light), which is optimal only for annual plants. Adults adapt to the lack of light, grown ginseng in the shade increases the concentration of chlorophyll in the leaves, which makes the latter acquire an intense green color. For ginseng in the second year of life, illumination of 20-30% of the illumination of an open place is favorable.

The discrepancy between the experimental data on the best root growth at an illumination of 50% and the recommendations to create a luminous flux of 35-40% of the maximum on plantations may cause confusion. The fact is that at half illumination, the seed productivity of plants and the activity of drugs obtained from the roots decrease.

As an example, I can recommend the following canopy device. It is convenient to assemble them from separate boards measuring 80X200 cm.The frame made of 40 × 40 mm beams, reinforced with diagonal slats, is sewn up with plaster shingles 4 cm wide with 1 cm gaps for plants 3 years of age and older and 0.5 cm for biennials. The shield is laid on a crate of beams installed on wooden, metal or reinforced concrete pillars. Clearances should be directed from north to south.

Directly under the canopy or above it, removable wooden frames covered with plastic wrap must be reinforced in an inclined position, which, firstly, scatters light, and secondly, it allows you to regulate rain irrigation and protect the soil of the ridges from waterlogging and storm erosion.

The advantage of sheds in front of solid canopies is that by changing the distance between the slats, you can adjust the amount of transmitted light. The calculation here is simple: if the closed and open areas (the width of the slats and gaps) are equal, then the illumination is 50% of the open space, provided the side walls are opaque. Recommended shingle shields are cheap, lightweight, but short-lived.

Approximately April 10, when night frosts down to -15 ... -20 ° C are already unlikely, it is necessary to remove the bulk of the snow from the ridges, leaving a small layer of 6-10 cm. This is necessary to protect the soil from excessive and prolonged wetting by melting snow. Ginseng tolerates dry soil quite well in spring and autumn, as it is characteristic of its natural habitats.

In the middle of the month, you need to install shading canopies that will protect the ridges from the bright April sun and help slow the thawing of the soil. This mode of gradual heating of the root of the inhabited layer prevents premature awakening of the buds and damage to the shoots by returning frosts. At the end of April, it is necessary to carefully remove from the ridges the winter insulating shelter (leaves, sawdust) and "hemp" of last year's shoots, which at this time are easily separated from the rhizome, leaving an even scar on it.

Shoots appear on the twentieth of May. Plants of the second year of life most often have one five-leaf, three-year-olds - 5X5 (3, 4), then 5X5X5 (3, 4) and 5X5X5X5. Plant care during the growing season consists in removing weeds, loosening the topsoil, which improves aeration and air access to the roots. I do not recommend carrying out this operation until June 5, until all the plants have sprung up. Hilling with moist soil is mandatory, which increases the resistance of the shoots to the wind.

The use of sheds from a slat with gaps allows the use of rainfall, but the need for artificial soil moisture remains. Watered with well, spring water with a neutral reaction, in extreme cases - with settled or boiled tap water. Due to the possible rotting of the buds and tops of the rhizome, it is advisable to moisten vegetative plants so that water does not get directly under the stem. This is helped by hilling shoots. It should be remembered that ginseng does not tolerate waterlogging.Average water consumption - 5 l / m2, watering frequency depends on the weather. In September, soil moisture can be reduced. In dry weather, water the soil between the ridges daily.

There is evidence of a beneficial effect on plants of water enriched with carbon dioxide. Here is another opportunity for naturalists to conduct a small experiment with the cultivation of ginseng, adding an element of novelty and interest to their plant growing activities.

Within a month after the emergence of seedlings above the ground, the formation of the shoot takes place, the mobilization of reserve substances, the root, the intensive sequential growth of internodes (stem, peduncle, pedicels) and leaves. During this critical period, the first in its annual life cycle, the plant is weakened and vulnerable to diseases and adverse effects, needs special care and disease prevention.

The second critical period of the year is found only in sexually mature individuals and is associated with the process of fruit ripening in them, which is accompanied by the diversion of assimilates and substances from the root. Practice and simple calculations show that the growth of the root mass per year decreases by about the mass of ripe fruits. This allows you to calculate the loss of yield during fruiting. The people have long noticed the usefulness of such techniques as sterilization of animals, artificial limitation of plant fertility for a larger and faster increase in body weight in the first case and vegetative and root mass in the second.

The pinching of flower arrows before flowering has been carried out since ancient times in all countries where ginseng is grown. This technique is performed when the length of the peduncle reaches 5 cm in plants that first formed flowers, and in the last year of cultivation, when it is planned to dig up marketable roots. In individuals that are used to obtain seeds, the number of flowers is limited by cutting out the central buds in the umbrella with sharp scissors before flowering. In the DPRK, one- and three-seeded fruits are also removed. In multi-stemmed plants, the peduncle is left only at one well-developed stem. Limiting the number of flowers in the inflorescence allows you to get large, completed seeds. Maximum annual fruiting weakens plants and reduces disease resistance.

Each year a ginseng grower has to solve two contradictory tasks - to get more seeds or to grow a high yield of roots. Each grower solves this problem in his own way. Of course, in some years, preference may be given to one or another type of product, but a general recommendation can be made not to leave more seeds than is necessary for the annual renewal of the plantation, taking into account germination and possible waste due to diseases.

It is advisable to have a separate bed on the plantation with mother plants of seven years of age and older, since the best seedlings are obtained from the seeds of just such plants. At the end of the growing season, six-year-old individuals of good development are transplanted onto this bed at a distance of 30 cm from each other. Shading over this bed should be more dense than over "commercial" plots (30-35%). Greater lighting reduces the seed production of ginseng.

Ginseng blooms in Siberian conditions at the 4th year of life, when a full three-leafed shoot appears, rarely at the 3rd. A year before flowering, a miniature "sessile" arrow forms at the top of the stem in the center of the leaf whorl — the rudiment of generative buds. In the annual cycle, flowering occurs around June 25. During this period, it is necessary to exclude rain on the flowers by switching to artificial and more frequent watering.

At this time, the soil between the ridges should be watered abundantly, since during flowering, the relative humidity of the air should be in the range of 80-85%.

In mid-August, the fruits begin to turn red, and the beds immediately take on a cheerful look, pleasing the eye of a caring owner.It is better to remove them from the plants a week after the reddening of the last "berry" in the seed. Due to the high fat content, the seeds are readily eaten by rodents - mice, rats, chipmunks, which in the years of mass reproduction cause great damage to forest and plantation ginseng breeding.

The mass of the ginseng root grows especially intensively from mid-July to the end of August, and in other years and longer, when the increase in the size of the fruits has already ended, and the temperature conditions are favorable for photosynthesis. It is only necessary to provide the plant with proper root nutrition (loosening, feeding with liquid fertilizer) and suitable soil and air moisture

There are observations of amateur ginseng growers about the beneficial effect of direct morning (up to 10 hours) and evening (after 20 hours) sunlight falling on plants. Although there is no exact, numerically supported data on this subject, there is scientific evidence to explain the mechanism of such a possible influence. The above-ground plant organs contain a blue-green pigment phytochrome, sensitive to red light, which, as you know, enriches the morning and evening sun rays when they pass through the thick layer of the atmosphere. Excited phytochrome transmits a signal to light-regulated regions of the cell genome. Then biosynthetic processes are triggered, which underlie the so-called photomorphogenesis. It is possible to prove the influence of the described factor on the cultivation of ginseng by conducting comparative studies of plants growing under different lighting conditions.

In early September, autumn color begins to appear on the leaves. In addition to a decrease in temperature, light also serves as a signal for this in nature. The loss of leaves by trees and the associated increase in illumination "warn" the inhabitants of the forest cover of the need to prepare for winter. In ginseng, a separating layer of cork begins to form between the stem and rhizome, the metabolism slows down. The stem shrinks, brightens, the tips of the leaves dry out. To extend the autumn period, it is necessary in September to slightly reduce the amount of light falling on the plants, which has a preserving, preserving effect on green shoots.

At the end of the growing season, the stems must be cut at a distance of 4-5 cm from the soil level. At this time, they are even more difficult to separate from the rhizome, so they must be left until spring, when this operation is carried out easily and without consequences. If necessary, remove the remainder of the stem from the dug root. The stump, swinging, is tilted to the sides, holding the top of the rhizome with the other hand. When a crack is outlined in the place of their connection, the stem is deflected away from the resting bud and separated. In general, such a need arises before drying the root, preparing a medicine or weighing it accurately. The roots are transplanted together with the shoot cuttings.

It is considered highly desirable to change the top two centimeters of soil each year at the end of the growing season. Over the course of a year, this layer, with a nearby housing location, is infected with fungal spores, carried by the wind from home gardens, and is polluted by atmospheric inclusions - road, coal dust. The accumulation of an infectious principle in the soil is evidenced by the growing with age the susceptibility of the tops of the rhizome in the non-growing season. To replace the soil, you can use leaf humus, compost, forest land, peat chips. This will enrich the soil with organic fertilizers.

When transplanting roots, mechanical damage, rotten processes, fungal ulcers, fresh traces of soil invertebrates are sometimes found. Such places must be cleaned of dead or damaged tissue, the affected process must be removed along living tissue and the place with a disturbed periderm must be moistened with a strong solution of potassium permanganate. This will prevent further spread of rot.After a while, the wetted area is covered with a cork cloth. You can also process the rhizome, only with greater care, limiting the surface to be treated to the required minimum, so as not to damage the resting and dormant buds.

So, it's October, the harvest of roots is harvested, stratified seeds are sown, fresh ones are laid in the sand and ripen in the basement or buried in an earthen vessel in the soil. Seedlings transplanted to a plantation for further growing ginseng... The ridges are covered and waiting for snow. The shields were removed from the frames and installed vertically to trap snow. There is time to analyze and summarize the results of the past year on the cultivation of ginseng. Of course, you have kept a journal where you record observations of the life of the ward plants. To assess the development of an aerial shoot (and indirectly of the root system), in addition to the number and dissection of leaves (shoot formula), the number of flowers and fruits, one can use such numerical characteristics as the height of the stem (in non-hilled plants), the average length of the leaf petiole, the average length and width the central leaf lobe in the shoot. Fixing these indicators allows you to keep track of when growing ginseng, plant development in different years and compare individual individuals with each other.