by Eric Brand

This is the back side of the packaging of authentic Dong Yang Shen. It indicates the grade (special grade), the weight (600g, one traditional jin), and the number of roots. The lower the number of roots, the larger their size.

Ginseng is often graded by size based on how many roots are required to make one jin (600g, also called a catty). Sizes under 20 are the best, 30 roots per jin is a bit small, 60-80 indicates very small roots. This same grading scale is used for Chinese and Korean ginseng as well. The very largest roots tend to be about 8 or 10 roots per jin. 15 is the most common size for large roots.