Nontimber forest products (NTFPs) play an important role in the lives of people who rely on forests. An absence of data on the size of harvests, their location, and the economic value of NTFPs prevents effective management and full utilization by all stakeholder groups. We set out to measure one important NTFP sector -- the medicinal plant trade in the diverse deciduous forests of the eastern United States, by surveying licensed buyers of ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) in 15 states about purchasing of other untracked species. To combat potential coverage and non-response bias we created a place-based model that predicted the probability of purchasing non-ginseng medicinals based on buyer location and used this to build more robust estimates. This viable method for estimating NTFP output is a replicable system that can be applied in other regions and for other products. We reviewed the literature and hypothesized biophysical and socioeconomic factors that might contribute to the prevalence of non-ginseng purchasing, and tested them on the respondents using multinomial logistic regression. The significant variables were used in two-step cluster analysis to categorize respondents and non-respondents in high or low production areas. Volume was assigned to non-respondents based on respondent behavior within each cluster. Both were then summed to estimate total output. The results depict trade volume and prices paid to harvesters for 11 medicinal NTFP species. There was significant variation between products. Two species, black cohosh (Actaea racemosa) and goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), accounted for 72 percent of trade volume and 77 percent of the value paid to harvesters. The total first-order value for all species estimated was 4.3 million $USD. The discrepancy between point-of-sale and retail value implies room for increasing value for all stakeholders at the base of the supply chain. Harvests for most species were concentrated in the central Appalachian coalfields. We also sought to understand what motivated or deterred participation by conducting qualitative interviews with buyers and other stakeholders. Buyers were interested in knowing the size and value of the trade, but had concerns about losing access to the resource, which was rooted in past experience with land managers and policy-makers, and conflicting discourse between stakeholders about the state of the trade and of wild populations. Many institutional deliverables are not well matched with the realities or priorities of the traditional trade. We describe potential avenues for collaboration and reciprocity, including providing market research and certifying or providing technical support for sustainably wild harvested material in addition to ongoing support for cultivation. / PHD / Nontimber forest products (NTFPs) are sources of sustenance and livelihood for people around the world. This broad category includes parts of plants such as barks, roots, and fruits, and fungi harvested for food, medicine, decoration, for use in crafts and cultural and spiritual ceremonies. They are harvested for personal use, and sold into local and global supply chains. Commercially harvested NTFPs have a dual nature. They have the potential for providing income without having the kind of large-scale disturbance caused by logging or other more impactful extractive industry. At the same time, most forests are not managed for NTFP production, and the ecological impacts of most NTFP activity are difficult to assess. Habitat loss and harvesting pressure has led to the monitoring and regulation in the trade of one iconic medicinal NTFP American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) For the majority of NTFPs, the scale, value and distribution of the trade is unknown, presenting a barrier to effective management and institutional investment in the trade. We sought to better understand one important NTFP supply chain, the trade in medicinal plants occurring in eastern deciduous forests using a voluntary survey program. To accomplish this, we surveyed and interviewed registered ginseng buyers in 15 states about the other products they purchase. This dissertation is divided into three parts with three different objectives. The first is to describe the trade in medicinal NTFPs from eastern forests. This includes what species are being harvested, how harvests are distributed throughout the study area, the value of surveyed species to producers, and market structure close to the point of sale. We found that the majority of the trade was taking place in central Appalachia. The majority of the trade in terms of value and total output was concentrated in two species, goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) and black cohosh (Actaea racemosa). The second chapter seeks to create a replicable method for projecting total volume for the most commonly harvested species, including predicting the buying of the majority of respondents who did not participated. We created a model that predicted the likelihood of a respondent purchasing non-ginseng based on characteristics of their location associated with the trade. The third chapter uses interviews with buyers and other participants to explore how to improve participation in NTFP studies and make the results more useful for stakeholders.

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