How to choose wild ginseng?

Many people know that wild ginseng is more precious than many other mountain ginsengs, but problems often arise when purchasing them, because many people use the slogan of wild ginseng. If people are not familiar with wild ginseng, they don’t know whether they have made the right choice. So they blindly buy it following others. In the end, they find that it doesn’t have much effect after eating it, and then they realize that they have been deceived. This not only wastes money, but also causes great harm to their bodies. So how do you choose wild ginseng?

When choosing wild ginseng, look at the five shapes

1. Reed: There are dense bowl-shaped scars on the reed, commonly known as "reed bowls". Wild ginseng reeds are slender and have dense reed bowls.

2. Pattern: There are fine and deep spiral horizontal patterns on the shoulders, which are fine, deep and dense.

3. Body: The main root is short and thick, the shoulders are broad, the body and legs are clearly separable, and most of the legs are two.

4. Skin: The outer skin is fine, clean and tight, yellow-white or yellow-brown, and looks old.

5. Whiskers: thin and long, sparse but not messy, with obvious bumps and dots on the whiskers, commonly known as "pearl dots".

2. Eating methods and taboos: When eating wild ginseng, keep the stomach and intestines clean, eat a light diet, do not drink tea, and do not eat it with radish or Veratrum.

It is not suitable for people with cold and fever and women during menstruation.

You can take 3g-5g of wild ginseng every day, put it in a porcelain bowl, fill it with water, seal the bowl, place it in a pot and steam it for 4-5 hours before taking it. The continuous use time should not be too long. 10 days can be a cycle. After taking it continuously for 10 days, stop taking it for 3-7 days, and then continue taking it.

3. Storage method: Ginseng contains more sugar and starch, which is easy to absorb moisture, and is also prone to mildew and insect infestation, affecting its medicinal value.

Characteristics of wild ginseng (raw sun-dried ginseng)

1. Ginseng rhizome: Wild ginseng has a round rhizome (commonly known as goose neck rhizome) that is longer or equal to its main body (taproot) and smooth like chopsticks. There are several or more rhizome bowls (stem marks) shaped like horse teeth or piles of flowers on the upper end of the round rhizome, which are arranged in sequence and can be clearly counted. It is also called two-section rhizome or three-section rhizome.

2. Taro (adventitious root): There are many thick taro roots shaped like date pits growing around the upper part of the round reed.

3. Main body (main root): Most of them are in the shape of a human figure, a lump, or a cross-sea shape (commonly known as a Wu shape), and there are also a small number of long cylindrical shapes (commonly known as a Wen shape). The diameter is generally between 1.5 and 3.5 cm, and the length is between 2 and 10 cm. The overall color is gray-yellow and has a spiritual feel.

4. Body pattern (shoulder pattern): There are many closely connected, orderly arranged, deep and fine circular horizontal lines (commonly known as iron wire bucket patterns) on the upper part of the main body. The total width of the lines is generally less than 1 cm, and there are vertical lines below the horizontal lines.

5. Whiskers (branch roots): They branch out naturally at the lower end of the main body, and generally have two evenly slender, flexible long whiskers (several times longer than the main body), which are clear and tidy, without fine hairs (commonly known as leather whiskers), and have obvious pearl points (wart-like protrusions).

Any ginseng that has the above five characteristics is the best wild ginseng; there are also those that do not have all five characteristics, but they must meet the three major characteristics of reed, texture, and whisker to be considered wild ginseng.

It is recommended that you follow these steps when choosing wild ginseng. You can always choose regular and authentic wild ginseng. The nutritional value of wild ginseng is extremely high. You can buy it home to make soup. Usually, this wild ginseng can also be used to make wine. After eating it, it can replenish qi deficiency and kidney deficiency. In short, many diseases in traditional Chinese medicine can be treated with this wild ginseng. Don’t make the wrong choice.