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Do you know what ginseng is? It is a plant
that is harvested and used as an herb. The natural herb is used
for many different things. It can be used in teas, in food (for
flavor) and as an herbal remedy. The Chinese have used ginseng
for centuries, but, in the past century, ginseng has become more
popular with people all over the world. It used to be found all
over the eastern part of the United States, but it was over-harvested,
and many of the plants died. In 1904, four brothers with the
last name of Fromm from the township of Hamburg (near Wausau)
transplanted 100 wild ginseng plants from nearby forests onto
a plot of their own land. They carefully duplicated the natural
growth conditions. They were the first farmers to successfully
grow ginseng. Today, there are many ginseng growers in Marathon
County, making it the Ginseng Capitol of the world. The county
has 3,000 acres of ginseng, which produces 1.3 to 1.5 million
pounds each year. That's a lot of ginseng, since only a small
amount of the herb is used in food, tea, and medicine. Most of
the herb gets shipped to Hong Kong.
Links to other sites about Ginseng:
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