Seasonal variation of saponins, sucurose and monosaccharides in cultivated ginseng roots

Yield of methanolic extract of fresh roots of Ginseng harvested in winter was found to be more than two-fold grater than from roots collected in summer; this remarkable increase is mainly due to the large increase of sucrose in roots in winter. On the other hand, biologically active dammarane-saponins in the roots increase in summer. These results indicate that roots should be harvested in summer for the production of high quality Ginseng extracts.