Under the golden autumn sun of Changbai Mountain, 70-year-old Cui Chang'an, a fourth-generation batou, or ginseng master, kneels on a forest slope, gently brushing away the soil to reveal a ginseng root at least 30 years old.
"We never just dig ginseng," Cui said. "We lift it, and always leave the small ones, replant the seeds. That's how the mountain keeps giving."
For centuries, people on Changbai Mountain have ventured deep into the forest to seek ginseng as part of a sacred journey known as fangshan. The local tradition was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2008.
Fangshan has evolved into a unique tradition with its own language, codes of conduct, and other practices passed down through generations.
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Labang/Organizing the Team: Before entering the mountains, the team leader (Batou) organizes the ginseng-gathering group.
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紧接着便是“放山”，即进山采挖人参。
Fangshan/Entering the Mountains: The team goes into the forest to search for and harvest ginseng.
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然后是“压山”，放山人在山林中按分工搜寻人参。
Yashan/Searching the Mountains: Gatherers search the forest according to their assigned areas and responsibilities.
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一旦发现人参就要高声“喊山”，呼应山林。
Hanshan/Announcing a Find: When someone discovers ginseng, they loudly alert their companions, who respond in acknowledgment.
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接着是“锁棒槌”，用红绳缠茎作标记。
Suobangchui/Tying the Stem: The above-ground stem of the ginseng is wrapped with a red string to mark the plant.
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然后是“抬棒槌”， 轻挖慢掘，不伤根须。
Taibangchui/Lifting the Ginseng: Using specialized tools, the ginseng is carefully dug out of the soil.
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“打参包”时，用苔藓、桦树皮包裹人参，以防损伤。
Dashenbao/Wrapping the Ginseng: The harvested ginseng is securely wrapped with moss, birch bark, or other protective materials.
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抬出棒槌后要“砍兆头”，为了纪念，也是给以后的放山人提醒。
Kanzhaotou/Making a Sign: Gatherers mark a symbol at the spot to commemorate the find and guide future seekers.
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最后是“下山”， 带着收获与敬畏离开山林。
Xiashan/Descending the Mountain: After the collection is complete, the team leaves the forest with the harvested ginseng.
From these ancestral forests, the legacy flows into Fusong county, known as China's hometown of ginseng. This county in Baishan city has over 460 years of documented cultivation history, while wild collection in the Changbai Mountain region dates back more than 1,700 years.
人参是唯一能单味成方的药材，独参汤具有回阳救逆之奇效。长白山人参是世界上最好的人参。人民大会堂吉林厅中珍藏着一株160年的长白山“野山参王”，成为长白山人参文化传承的鲜活见证，也让更多人得以直观感受长白山人参的非凡魅力与深厚底蕴。
Ginseng is revered in China as a “miracle herb” for medicine and nutrition and can be used alone in prescriptions. Some of the world’s finest ginseng grows on Changbai Mountain, including a 160-year-old wild root preserved in the Jilin Hall of the Great Hall of the People.
人参的种植方法有哪些？一般来说，种植人参主要分为两大类方法：第一类是在平坦的土地上进行种植，类似于普通农作物的种植方式，这种方法被称为园参种植；第二类则是在森林中播种，让参苗在自然环境中自由生长，人工不进行任何干预，这种方法被称为林下参种植，其生长环境与野生山参完全相同。这两种方法都是智慧的结晶，体现了人类对自然规律的尊重与顺应。
Currently, ginseng is cultivated in two main ways: on flat land, like ordinary crops, known as garden ginseng; and under forest canopy, where seedlings grow naturally without human interference - known as wild-simulated ginseng, essentially equivalent to wild ginseng, a national first-class protected plant in China.
抚松的万良长白山人参市场是国内唯一的国家级专业人参交易市场，也是全球最大的交易中心，全国约80%的人参在此进行交易，堪称世界人参行业的风向标和晴雨表。“抚松人参”这一品牌在国内外市场的影响力持续扩大。
About 45,000 people in Fusong work in the ginseng industry. Fusong now produces five major categories of ginseng goods - food, health supplements, cosmetics, medicines, and bioproducts - totaling more than 600 varieties.
At its heart lies the Wanliang Ginseng Market, the world’s largest national-level trading center, where about 80 percent of China’s ginseng changes hands, serving as a barometer for the global market.
深度整合一二三产业资源，着力打造世界人参交易集散地、种质资源原发地、人参产品研创地和人参文化溯源地，持续推动人参产业全链条高质量发展。
Initiatives from Jilin province as well as Baishan now focus on standardization, brand development, market expansion, and technology integration, forming a full industrial chain from seed to market. This ensures its position as a global ginseng hub.
In Jilin, the eastern foothills of the Changbai Mountain form the core ginseng-producing region. Beyond Fusong, 23 counties across Tonghua, Jilin, and Yanbian Korean autonomous prefecture also thrive on ginseng cultivation, together accounting for 85 percent of its exports.
吉林省编制了长白山人参产业高质量发展规划，运用高科技手段破解了参龄鉴定等长期困扰市场的难题，误差不超过半年，线下人参市场实现了“货真价实”。
Jilin has introduced a high-quality development plan for the Changbai Mountain ginseng industry. In 2024, the ginseng output value surpassed 80 billion yuan in the province, adding to its millennium-old reputation as the “king of herbs”.
来源：中国日报
