Browse - Most popular shows featuring: ginseng harvesting^x

Deep in Appalachia, there's a war brewing over an ancient crop valued at $600 a pound. Supply can't keep up with demand and it's causing fierce competition inside and outside the law. This mountain gold is ginseng, and there's a frenzied race to harvest it during its short two-month season.

We travel across the country to find industrious and ingenious Americans who prove they're not afraid to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty to make a living. Dealing in the diverse, exotic and, even occasionally, cringe-worthy underground economy of crud. Eels, mushrooms, ginseng, bloodworms and burls are important natural resources. Their harvesting goes back many generations and is now subject to federal, state and local laws. Anyone contemplating these activities should follow all legal requirements and sustainable practices.