Christopher Schultz spends many hours gazing skyward outside his home near Frenchtown on the western edge of Harrison County.
The aspiring astronaut and well-read science-fiction fan loves to look at stars and planets through his telescope.
But to expand his ability to look up, Christopher, 17, sometimes spends many hours looking down. He searches the woods hear his family's home for ginseng , a plant long been used as a medicine and as a stimulant in such drinks as tea.
With money he earned two years ago from ginseng he found, he bought a computer and printer. One of the computer's programs shows a simulation of the night sky, with stars and planets marked, which makes it easier to find constellations, he said.
But earning cash from ginseng requires well-developed instincts for finding the plant, which is scattered widely, usually in shaded areas.
``It doesn't like sun,'' said Christopher, a sophomore at North Harrison High School.
Christopher, the son of Anita Schultz of Frenchtown and Robert O'Neal of Depauw, said he learned the art of finding the plant from his grandfather, Eldon Bary, a longtime ginseng hunter.
``I'd have to give all the credit to him,'' Christopher said.
Ginseng 's season, which lasts only about a month, begins in mid-August, he said. After digging up the roots and leaves, Christopher washes them and sells them to a bake shop in Georgetown, which sometimes has paid more than $100 per pound. The business then sells it to suppliers, Christopher said.
A haul of about four pounds two years ago brought in enough for the computer. But such high prices come with a price of another sort. The scarce supplies that bring in more money require ginseng hunters to walk longer and encounter more dirt and possibly poison ivy.
Still, Christopher said, ``You want it to be scarce'' so it brings a greater price, offsetting the extra sweat it takes to find it.
He described one hazard in particular that is the banee of ginseng hunters: mistaking it for poison oak or poison ivy. ``I'll get poison ivy all the way down my arm,'' he said. ``You pay some (other) consequences - mosquito bites, breaking your ankle stepping in a hole.''
There are also benefits beyond the cash, Christopher said. ``You get out into the wilderness and spend some time with Mother Nature. It's kind of great to get away from people and just enjoy the woods and wildlife,'' he said.
Besides, he said, his search gets easier as he gains experience.
``I can go out one year and the next year know what it looks like,'' he said. ``You don't have to look it up in a book.''
Christopher said future finds may help finance expansion of his technology. He hopes to gain access to the Internet in coming years and chat electronically with other space enthusiasts.
``I definitely have my heart set on being an astronaut,'' he said while showing a visitor pictures and charts on space themes on the walls of his bedroom. He also has posted a greeting card with a picture of the Apollo 11 astronauts, given to him by his father upon Christopher's mleting junior high school.
Novels and short stories also are prominent in Christopher's room.
``I love reading science fiction and fantasy,'' he said. ``You get to experience that whole other world.''
Christopher Schultz, a North Harrison High sophomore, posed with his ginseng -hunting companion, Patch.
- BY : George Morrison - Special to the Courier-Journal
- SOURCE : The Courier-Journal Louisville, KY1997.02.26
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