Ginseng Harvesting
and
Commercial Dealer License Information

Harvest Season and Condition Restrictions

• A person may harvest ginseng roots only from August 1 through November 30.
• No person may possess harvested green ginseng roots between April 1 and August 1. A person may possess dry ginseng at any time of the year.
• Only mature ginseng plants with at least three leaves of five leaflets each may be harvested and only when the seeds are red.
• Persons harvesting ginseng plants must plant seeds from the plants in the immediate area of the collection site.
• Persons wishing to harvest ginseng from public lands, such as State Forests, State Park Lands or Allegheny National Forest, must first secure a permit from the appropriate agency. This permit is not the same as the commercial license.
• Persons wishing to harvest ginseng from private land do not need a permit, but must have the landowner's permission to remove this or any other plant.

Beginning May 2002, individual State Forest Districts stopped issuing collection permits for ginseng and goldenseal. To determine if ginseng/goldenseal collection is permitted on State Forest land, contact the District Office in which collection is desired.

Harvesters need to complete a Harvester Certification form for all ginseng harvested. Information included on the form: name/address of harvester; date of harvest; date of transfer to dealer; name of dealer; name/address of landowner. The Harvester Certification states that you received permission from the landowner to harvest ginseng on their land. You can obtain Harvester Certification forms by calling the Department at 717-787-3444.

Dealer Information

• Any person within Pennsylvania who plans to buy, trade, or barter ginseng with the intent to sell ginseng or any other vulnerable plant must obtain a Vulnerable Plant License.
• One may apply at any time during the year for a commercial license. That license is valid until June 30 of the year following the date of issuance.
• The fee for a commercial license is $50.00. Checks must accompany the application form and be made payable to the "Commonwealth of Pennsylvania."
• Application forms for a license and transaction report forms are available from the Bureau of Forestry at the following address:

  Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
  Bureau of Forestry
  P.O. Box 8552
  Harrisburg, PA 17105-8552
  717-787-3444

New for 2003-2004 ginseng harvest season: Under the authority of the Wild Resource Conservation Act and regulations to regulate the digging, harvesting, and sale of vulnerable plants, the Department will be requiring dealers to maintain harvesting documentation in their transaction records and to include it in the Ginseng Dealer Quarterly Reports submitted to the Department.

Listing of Ginseng Dealers in Pennsylvania

Requirements of a Licensed Dealer

• Commerce records must be maintained by all licensed dealers and include the following information:
  • Name and address of all persons involved in any exchange of a vulnerable plant, along with the date of each transaction;
  • Scientific and common names of the vulnerable plants;
  • The county where the plants were harvested;
  • Description detailing the form or condition of the plants (root, seeds, etc.);
  • The year the plants were harvested;
  • The weight, destination and date of export for each shipment of plant roots;
  • A statement of whether the plant roots were wild or cultivated;
  • Any other records required by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR).
• All commerce records must be maintained for five years and must be made available upon request for inspection by DCNR.
• All dealers must submit a Ginseng Quarterly Report on forms provided by DCNR within 15 days of the end of each quarter. The forms must be completed fully. Reports must be submitted even if there are no transactions in the quarter. The quarters are as follows:

  Quarter 1 - January 1 through March 31
  Quarter 2 - April 1 through June 30
  Quarter 3 - July 1 through September 30
  Quarter 4 - October 1 through December 31

• All dealers must submit an annual report on forms provided by DCNR by January 15 that includes transactions from January 1 to December 31. The reports must be completed fully. An annual report must be submitted even if there are no transactions for the year.
• The transfer of any commercial license is strictly prohibited.

Dealers are required to attach Harvester Certifications to the Ginseng Quarterly Report forms to document the legal harvest of ginseng in your possession. Effective August 1, 2003, a Harvester Certification form must be completed for EVERY transfer of ginseng by a harvester to a dealer. For PA ginseng harvested in previous harvest seasons, the name and address of the landowner is not required; however, all other portions of the form must be completed. For PA ginseng harvested on or after August 1, 2003, the entire Harvester Certification form must be completed. The Harvester Certification form must be completed and signed by the harvester and given to the dealer at the time of transfer. The dealer will attach the ORIGINAL completed Harvester Certification to the corresponding Ginseng Dealer Quarterly Report when submitting the Report to the Department. The dealer will retain the YELLOW copy of the Harvester Certification to file with business transaction records required by the Department. The dealer will return the PINK copy of the Harvester Certification to the harvester.

Exportation Restrictions

• No person can export ginseng out of Pennsylvania without first obtaining a commercial license and a Pennsylvania ginseng certificate.
• A Pennsylvania ginseng certificate is required for each export shipment of Pennsylvania ginseng.

Requirements for a Certification

• All ginseng must originate in Pennsylvania.
• A certificate will only be issued if the dealer presents the shipment to the Bureau of Forestry at a District Forest Office along with the following information:
  • Dealer's name and commercial license number;
  • A statement of whether the ginseng is wild or cultivated and green or dry;
  • The year of harvest of the ginseng being certified;
  • The weight of the shipment verified by a weight receipt from a Department of Agriculture certified scale;
  • Transaction records related to the ginseng being certified;
  • The shipment number and any other information the DCNR may request.
• The transfer of any ginseng certificate is strictly prohibited.

Unsold Ginseng

• A dealer having unsold ginseng on March 31 is required to obtain a weight slip for that ginseng from a Department of Agriculture certified scale and submit a copy of that slip to the Bureau of Forestry by May 1.
• A dealer may not obtain a Pennsylvania ginseng certificate to export unsold ginseng possessed by the dealer in excess of the amount shown on the weight slip.

A LICENSE MAY BE REVOKED IF ANY OF THE ABOVE CONDITIONS ARE NOT MET

PA State Forest Rules and Regulations

PA State Game Lands Rules and Regulations

PA State Parks Rules and Regulations