[Illustration: Fig. 7.--Pinkroot (_Spigelia marilandica_).]
Pinkroot (_Spigelia marilandica_, fig. 7) is a native perennial herb
occurring in rich open woods from New Jersey to Wisconsin and south
to Florida and Texas. The root is an official drug, the use of which
has declined in recent years, apparently on account of the extent to
which pinkroot has been adulterated with the worthless roots of another
plant known as East Tennessee pinkroot. Prospective growers of pinkroot
should obtain seeds or roots for planting from thoroughly reliable
sources only.
Pinkroot makes a vigorous growth under conditions suitable for growing
ginseng or goldenseal, and partial shade is usually necessary, although
if given a rich, moist, loamy soil it may be grown without shade in
situations not too hot and dry. It is propagated either from seeds or
from divisions of old roots. It is best to sow the seeds as soon as
they are ripe, but if mixed with moist sand and kept in a cool place
sowing may be deferred until fall or the following spring. The seeds
are sown in drills 6 inches apart in well-prepared seed beds, and in
the spring, when the young plants are a few inches high, they are set
about a foot apart each way in the permanent beds. The old roots are
divided when dormant, and each division should consist of a portion of
the root with one or more buds and a number of the small rootlets. They
are set in the same manner as the seedlings. Thorough cultivation and
freedom from weeds are essential for good results.
The roots usually attain a marketable size in three years, but will
give a heavier yield at the end of the fourth or fifth year. They are
harvested in the fall, and after the tops are cut off the roots are
well washed and thoroughly dried. Little can be said regarding yield,
but returns from small areas indicate that a bed 4 by 30 feet will
yield from 10 to 12 pounds of dry root in four years. The prices paid
to collectors of pinkroot before the war ranged from 15 to 30 cents a
pound. The price in June, 1920, was about 60 cents a pound.