1kg bamboo ginseng: Rare item, 100 years old, priced at hundreds of millions

Pointing to a ginseng root being placed on a scale in his house, Mr. Minh in Sapa (Lao Cai) boasted: "This root was found near the top of Hoang Lien Son mountain range, extremely rare because now the quantity can be counted on the fingers."

Mr. Minh said that the ginseng root was still fresh with leaves, weighed 1.05kg, was about 80cm long, and had over 80 segments - each segment was equivalent to one year of age. However, he counted 80 segments, and there was another section because the tree was too old, and some of the bark had been eaten by termites, so the segments could not be counted. This root was found by a forest ranger on a cliff at an altitude of 2,300 meters near the top of Hoang Lien Son.

Recently, many customers have called to offer hundreds of millions of dong to buy this ginseng root, but he has not agreed to sell.

According to Mr. Minh, this ginseng variety was previously found in abundance in Tibet at an altitude of 4,000-5,000m. But this ginseng species later became completely depleted due to over-exploitation.

In our country, bamboo ginseng is found on the Hoang Lien Son mountain range. This ginseng species sheds its leaves once a year and grows a new segment. Each year it only produces 3-4 leaves, each leaf has 7 lobes. The ginseng root grows up to the sky, but after a few years, the stem becomes too heavy, it collapses, and is covered with leaf litter, so that the stem is submerged in the soil and rocks.

Mr. Minh also said that in fact, the name "Tieu Truc Nhan Sam" is the Chinese name for this rare herb. In Vietnam, ethnic minorities often call it "Tuong That Hoang" (Wild Tam That) or "Kon That Thach Dac" (Rock Lizard Root). However, they differ from other wild Tam That in altitude. "Tieu Truc Nhan Sam" is often found at altitudes above 2,000m, while "Tuong That Hoang" is found at lower altitudes.

The reason they are so expensive is because the medicinal properties of this bamboo ginseng are equivalent to Ngoc Linh ginseng. Currently, they are gradually depleted, so ginseng roots that are about 100 years old to 200-300 million are extremely rare.

Previously, in 2015, “forest man” Tran Ngoc Lam - who had been dying of lung cancer for 15 years - went into the Hoang Lien Son forest, climbed to the top of Fansipan and discovered many precious medicinal plants. Among them, he found an 800-year-old ginseng root at an altitude of 2,700m.

According to scientists, the 800-year-old ginseng that Mr. Lam found cannot be valued. Because it is impossible to find a second root with such a long lifespan in Korea and North Korea. In Vietnam, a 200-300-year-old ginseng root is already very rare.

At that time, if sold, he could get billions, but Mr. Tran Ngoc Lam was determined not to sell. He chopped it into pieces and distributed a little to his friends and neighbors. He soaked the rest in alcohol to drink for fun.

Talking to PV.VietNamNet, physician Bui Hong Minh, permanent vice president of the Ba Dinh Oriental Medicine Association, said that calling it wild ginseng or cut bamboo ginseng depends on the place. But cut bamboo ginseng is an old name. And if it is really cut bamboo ginseng with a root weighing more than 1kg and nearly 100 years old, it is a rare commodity, with a market price of up to hundreds of millions.

According to physician Minh, even Ngoc Linh ginseng, bamboo ginseng or wild ginseng are often the same, the value of the giant tubers always depends on the buyer. If the buyer likes it, they can pay up to hundreds of millions, even billions of dong and vice versa. As for whether the goods are real or fake, they must be tested to know exactly.