By Jennifer Gerrity
Photo by Susan Leopold, 2021.
Herb Pharm expanded a planting of goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) roots from nursery stock this fall on private land in SW Virginia. The land is owned by Blake, a multigeneration ginseng producer who embarked on goldenseal cultivation after noticing wild stands naturalized around his 60 acres of forested land.
“Once I saw the goldenseal stands around the ginseng and how they grow together, I thought that it might make sense to grow more goldenseal,” remarked Blake while he gazed out over his three acres of certified organic cultivated goldenseal.
This special project is a multiyear installation of locally sourced root stock secured through the Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD), Appalachian Harvest Herb Hub in Duffield, Virginia. It has achieved verification through the United Plant Savers Forest Grown program. Herb Pharm and ASD have collaborated on this project for three years now, splitting costs and planning a long-term forest farming project.
The first year the farm in Williams, Oregon transplanted a substantial portion of our own organic goldenseal under the direction of Alexis Durham, Herb Pharm’s Director of Botanical Affairs. This planting was supplemented with locally sourced roots. The plots have now been further expanded with additional cultivated material.
Katie Commender of ASD works to source roots from several Appalachian growers. She explains “Nurseries sell for landscapes and the cost is prohibitive—we simply need more production for farm stock. For forest farmers to be successful, they must have access to reasonably priced roots and seeds. This is not easy to come by and is a significant gap in the supply chain. We were lucky to find enough material for planting this year.”
Blake planted the roots himself the first year, along with his children, who helped. Since then, the labor became too intense, so the ASD Herb Hub sent interns to help. These paid interns learn traditional forest farming skills and gain the opportunity to participate in native plant generative practices. The interns, Susan and Dave, were previously mentoring under Blake in the cultivation of ginseng, so they knew the land well from spreading and tending ginseng seed in previous seasons.
In August 2021, Jennifer Gerrity, Herb Sourcing and Procurement Manager at Herb Pharm LLC, and Susan Leopold visited the ASD Herb Hub, as well as Blake’s land. They both noted that the previous plantings were thriving and that the plots for the next installation were the ideal terrain for this project.
Once the goldenseal blooms and goes to seed, a portion of those plants will be available for digging. Whatever is eventually dug, 10% will go back into the ground for regeneration, thus creating a perpetual forest garden.
The future of offering goldenseal on a commercial level depends on cultivation efforts and root stock propagation. Conservation through Cultivation is the model Herb Pharm follows, while preserving goldenseal for future generations.
Jennifer Gerrity is the Herb Sourcing and Procurement Manager at Herb Pharm in Williams, Oregon.
