Nutrition
It gets its food through photosynthesis and through sucking
nutrients through the roots. Ginseng stores its food and
nutrients in the roots. The plant contains venation used for
spreading water and nutrients throughout the plant using Phloem
and Xylem plant tissues. It needs moist soil and Ginseng cannot
be in a place that is too sunny. Ginseng has to have
enough shade in order to do photosynthesis. It usually stays in
cool places that are about 65 degrees Fahrenheit. As any plant
it requires Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur as nutrients and it
grows in slightly acidic soil with an acidity of 5.6 to 5.8. It
does not grow in alkaline soil (basic soil)(19).
Photo By Eric Burkhart
Ginseng does not require a host but it is a host for several bacteria
and fungi species. Bacillus megaterium, Micrococcus
luteus, B. cereus,
Apergillus fumigatus, and Lysinibacillus fusiformis
are known bacteria that live within ginseng roots and help it obtain
nutrients. It also uses fungi which have hyphae (fungi cells that
extend outward into the ground) to obtain water and nutrients (18).