The best time to plant ginseng is in the fall well before the ground has frozen, at some time between mid-August and mid-December. By planting your seeds in the fall, you give them all winter to acclimatize themselves with the surrounding soil conditions. Fall can be a dry season, so wait until a couple of rains or wet snows to soak the ground before you plant. It is also possible to plant early in the spring if you have seed that is beginning to sprout at that time, but remember that spring germination rates are roughly about half as good as fall germination rates.



Ginseng seeds should be planted to1/4 inch below the surface of the ground. To assist with the work you'll need a good home-made seeding device consisting of a mop handle 4 feet in length, a PVC half inch pipe 3' 10" in length, a hunting knife with a 6-inch blade (or other sharp metal spike, like a long tent peg), and some duct tape that is 2 inches in width. Tape the knife to the mop handle, allowing the knife blade to extend 3 inches from end of the handle. Next, tape the PVC pipe so its end is a inch short of the mop handle end. When you are planting and you press the knife blade into the ground to test for soil depth, the handle will prevent the soil from clogging the PVC seed pipe. The device is ready for use.

To begin the seeding, kick aside the leaf litter mulch around your spot. Use the blade of the seeding tool to test the ground until you confirm that there is at least 2 inches of soil below your spot. If you reach a layer of rocks before this, your location may not give the root enough space to grow. You may need to check the immediate area for better locations. Once you have determined that the site is satisfactory, stick the blade into the ground. Next, swing the handle left to right so that blade creates a "v"-shaped slot in the ground about inch deep. With the blade still in ground, drop one seed into the PVC pipe and into your hole in the ground. Now pinch the hole closed, firmly step on the hole, and restore all leaf litter. The entire seeding process should take between 8 and 10 hours for each half acre.

Some similar ginseng growing methods are far more intensive, involving the sowing of ten to hundred times more seed per acre, but have serious disadvantages. Such types of ginseng agriculture include ‘woods-grown' ginseng (ginseng sowed in prepared beds under forest cover) and "wild-simulated" ginseng (a method where the litter is raked back with a steel tong and prepared for planting under forest cover). Some of the disadvantages include increased labor, higher fertilizer costs, and increased fungicide use, coupled with lower root value.