Seneca snakeroot, known also as senega or seneca root (_Polygala
senega_, fig. 8), is a small native perennial, occurring in rocky woods
in the eastern United States and Canada. Seneca is not yet grown on a
commercial scale, although cultivated experimentally in a number of
places. The root is used in medicine.
Seneca can be grown in good garden soil or in rather firm, stony soil,
provided it contains a fair proportion of leaf mold or very well rotted
manure. Shade is not essential, although the plant thrives in partial
shade or under modified forest conditions. Roots for propagation may be
obtained from dealers or may be collected from the wild in autumn or
early spring. If set 15 inches apart in rows, the plants may be readily
cultivated until they reach a marketable size. The seeds ripen in June
and may then be planted, or they may be stratified by mixing with sand
and buried in boxes or flower pots in moist soil until the following
spring, when they may be sown in seed beds or shallow boxes of loam
and leaf mold. The seedlings when old enough to be handled safely may
be transplanted to the permanent beds and set in rows to facilitate
cultivation. In cold situations they will probably need to be protected
during the first winter after transplanting. A light covering of straw
or pine needles will be sufficient to protect them from severe frost.
The plant is slow in growth, but experiments thus far indicate that
about four years are required to obtain marketable roots. The roots
should be dug in the fall, thoroughly cleaned, and dried. There are no
reliable data on the probable yield. Seneca root is in constant demand,
and collectors formerly received from 35 to 50 cents a pound. The price
to collectors in June, 1920, was 90 cents a pound.