Clay County Free Press
(Submitted photo)
CLAY, W.Va. — West Virginia’s 2018 ginseng season opened Saturday, Sept. 1, and continues through Friday, Nov. 30.
New to the law this season is that all diggers will need to provide a government- issued photo identification to sell their ginseng to a registered dealer. Fines for violating the law shall be no less than $500 up to $1,000 for a first offense and $1,000 and not more than $2,000 for multiple offenses.
The perennial herb grows slowly with seeds that take two years to germinate. By law, only ginseng plants with three or more prongs are old enough to harvest. Ginseng diggers must replant the seeds from the parent plant in the spot where they harvested it to help continue the species.
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