HABITAT

 Hydrastis canidensis

Photograph by John Morrison

Source: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/na/na0403.html (Wild World...[Updated 2001])

Photograph by Wayne Angel

Photograph by Michael Condon

Photograph by Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Natural Areas & Preserves

Goldenseal grows in moist, nutrient rich soils in temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, and is found most abundantly in the central parts of its range in the states of Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia (Gagnon 1999). This biome holds some of the most biologically diverse temperate areas of the world and is found only in eastern North America and central China (McGinley 2007).

One of the most diverse eco-regions is the Appalachian mixed mesophytic forest (McGinley 2007). It can contain up to 30 different species of canopy trees in one site, as well as ferns, perennial and annual herbaceous plants, shrubs, small trees, amphibians, freshwater fish, birds and a diverse array of mammals and insects (McGinley 2007).

As discussed earlier, goldenseal has been listed as an endangered species. Goldenseal has two different types of threats. As a species it is targeted specifically for harvesting as a medicinal plant. Also, primary threats to temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in North America include 1) the timber industry and development which has lead to extreme fragmentation of forests, causing there to be decreasing continuity and interactions among species, 2) copper, coal and oar mining, which are causing high levels of pollution, especially in the form of acid-runoff and acid rain, 3) highways, which decrease species dispersal and increase mortality rates and 4) poorly managed hunting systems and decrease in predator populations, which has lead to extremely high dear populations, causing stress to under story plant populations (McGinley 2007).

Many of the larger fragments of forest are managed by federal and state forest services. This does not indicate protection from any of the above threats, because most federal management plans are inclusive to the timber and mining industries and road development (McGinley 2007).

A direct threat to the species Hydrastis canadensis is the harvesting of wild populations (Gagnon 1999). Goldenseal grows most effectively by vegetative propagation through rhizomes, which unfortunately are the portion of the plant harvested for medicinal use (Gagnon 1999). Seed propagation has a low rate of success, therefore much of the energy of the plant goes towards root and rhizome growth (Gagnon 1999). The concern is that once the soil is disturbed and rhizomes removed, the plant may not fully recover for many years, if at all (Gagnon 1999). As forest fragments are cut away and its habitat deminished and simultaneously it becomes more and more  in demand on the national and global market, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find in the wild(Gagnon 1999).  

 One study concludes that  a number of significant steps must be made for conservation of wild populations of goldenseal (Gagnon 1999). First, there should be an inventory and monitoring of existing wild populations to understand more about the ecology of the species, although because of the high demand for goldenseal, a highly confidential monitoring system would be necessary, or else the system itself could be responsible for the extinction of the species by leading collectors to secret locations (Gagnon 1999). Secondly, the protection and conservation of existing species is possible by creating a network of known protected populations (Gagnon 1999). Efforts should be made to increase cultivation through incentives, while outlawing wild harvesting (Gagnon 1999). Ultimately, more research regarding the ecology of the species is needed to understand the full extent of its endangered status, including population dynamics and minimum viable populations (Gagnon 1999).

In a study titled Managing National Forests for Non-Timber Forest Products, Dr. James Chamberlain III discusses the challenge of understanding how much harvesting of non-timber forest products (NTFP) such as goldenseal is actually occurring (Chamberlain 2000). The economic livelihood of collectors is addressed in relation to the environmental impact of wild harvesting. He concludes that collectors of  all NTFP’s should be included within the decision making and management of forests, thereby allowing collection rates to be monitored closely and collectors to continue their business (Chamberlain 2000).