Background : For cultivation of varieties of ginseng, the pure line selection method, which is to select the best among those cultivated in farms for pedigree breeding, replicated yield trials and regional adaptation trials before registering as a new variety, is widely used. Although there are 25 registered varieties of ginseng in Korea, the quality of ginseng is declining together with the amount of harvest being decreased by 15 - 20% due to the heat injuries and diseases from the warming & abnormal climate. Thus, the needs for development of disaster-resistant varieties with better chances of surviving through high temperature, salts and disease are increasing. Therefore, this study is to cultivate disaster-resistant varieties among those selected for their disaster tolerance and salt tolerance through regional adaptation trials.
Methods and Results : As a result of examining the growth characteristics of the selected 2-6-years-old varieties used in the study, among the 6-years-old crops, Eumseong 9 and Eumseong 10 showed superior growth in aboveground parts, Eumseong 10 showed superior growth in underground parts, among the 5-years-old crops, Eumseong 15 showed superior growth in both above and below aerial parts, and among the 4-years-old crops, Eumseong 9 and Eumseong 16 showed superior growth while the growth in the underground parts were satisfactory in the order of Eumseong 16 > Eumseong 10 > Eumseong 12 > Eumseong 9. Among the 3-years-old crops, the most superior growth in both above and below aerial parts was observed in Goryeo 2 with the weight of the underground part, in the 2-years-old crops, Eumseong 26 showed the most superior growth in both above-ground and underground parts.
Conclusion : Based on the above results, Eumseong 10 among the 6-year-old crops, Eumseong 15 among the 5-years-old crops, Eumseong 9 & Eumseong 16 among the 4-years-old crops, Goryeo 2 among the 3-years-old crops and Eumseon 26 among the 2-years-old crops showed the most superior growth among the selected varieties. The growth characteristics of both above and below aerial parts in each year will continuously be monitored.