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.