Monongahela National Forest will begin selling ginseng permits for the 2024 harvest season on Monday, Aug. 26. In addition to following all state laws, a Forest Service permit is required to dig ginseng on National Forest System lands.
You can purchase a permit at the ranger stations in Parsons, Petersburg, Richwood, Bartow, Marlinton or White Sulphur Springs, or the Supervisor’s Office in Elkins, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Monongahela National Forest ginseng permits cost $20 each. A separate permit is required for each district on the Forest. This year, you may only buy one permit per district at a time. Each permit allows you to collect up to 95 plants from one ranger district during the West Virginia ginseng season, Sept. 1 through Nov. 30. You can purchase an additional permit for the same district after you return each completed permit, as supplies allow.
Ginseng plants must have three or more prongs and have produced fruit this year to be legal for harvest. When harvesting, plant the fruit on-site and then keep the rest of the plant intact. Harvest no more than 24 plants per day and have no more than 24 plants in your possession while on national forest land.
For more information about state laws concerning ginseng harvest, refer to https://wvforestry.com/laws-regulations/ginseng/.
For more information about Monongahela National Forest ginseng permits, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/mnf/passes-permits/forestproducts/?cid=FSEPRD597459.
