No, I’m not talking about hillbillies this time. I am talking about some local plant-life.
This ramp patch is on the clear cut mountain that has been prepped for mining. One thing I noticed about this patch right away. They are full grown plants and about three inches smaller than plants found in their normal environment. The normal environment for these plants have been removed leaving the plants susceptible to the sun. Ramps (Wild Leek) prefer moist ground with plenty of shade. If the mining on this site doesn’t wipe these plants out this year, the simple fact they have been removed from their natural environment will prevent growth next year.
This flowering plant is called Bloodroot. This is the first time I have ever seen this plant bloom before the leaves open. This is another plant that requires shaded moist areas for optimum growth. Most likely this will be the last year it is found on this mountain regardless of how far the mine site progresses.
The reason I bring these plants up is because I want to talk about the endangered plant ginseng for just a bit. For generations ginseng has been harvested both as a medicinal herb and to sale on the market. I have used it as a source of income in more years than I care to mention. There have been all sorts of restrictions put on harvesters of the ginseng plant because of its endangered classification. Normally I wouldn’t have a problem with those restrictions because ultimately it is the plant that needs protecting.
Ginseng requires the same type of soil and shade as the other plants mentioned in this post. Mountaintop removal does more to destroy the range of ginseng in one year than a multitude of harvesters could do over decades. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is obviously the removal of the plants protecting cover – not to mention the mountain. Another reason that is not quite so obvious is the loss of habitat for the wild turkey. Turkey eat the berries and then naturally spread the seed wherever they roam.
With the loss of habitat for the turkey and the ginseng plant – I would say this plant doesn’t stand a chance of coming off the endangered list any time soon, if ever. What aggravates me about that is sooner rather than later more restrictions will be put on harvesting the plant and yet the coal industry wipes out plant habitat with every fallen tree – with no restrictions.
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6 users responded in this post
Denny buddy you are so right. It’s a lot easier to get some local politician or USFS wonk excited about ginseng because it is a registered economic crop. Ramps aint. Neither are most traditional medicinal plants.
that first picture is why we should be fighting. Who can support that idea. I nearly cried.
Thanks for commenting and I’m with you.
Denny have you considered moving these ramps?
If you can wait till the frost then you won’t lose any. If you were to get them now before they blossom really big you might save most of them anyway. There are lots and lots of seeds in the soil seed bank so it is best to scrape leaf litter and dig deep underneath the roots and all to get the little men out of there.
I put this picture on my blog. Hope you don’t mind. I hope we are going to be buddies.
I actually love to eat ramps so we dug a lot of these. They were already full grown. Though a lot smaller than they should have been.
I don’t mind about the photo – and it’s good to meetcha.
I like them best before they get all big and leafy. all that meanness is packed down thar in that little bitty stub of a root. it would be awesome to have that patch of dirt moved to my backyard.
I can tell you this – that is some of the richest soil you will find. In a few months, you will find it at the bottom of a valley fill.