P. ginseng is collected from cultivated plants in China, Korea and Japan. Also called Asian ginseng it is indigenous to the mountainous forests of eastern Asia.

P. quinquifolium called American Ginseng grows in rich woods in eastern USA and Canada. It is collected from cultivated stands and has been exported to China since the early 1700s. It is now an endangered species in the United States.

P. notoginseng also called Sanchi Ginseng is collected from Russia.

P. pseudoginseng ssp. Himalaicus var augustifolius (Himalayan Ginseng) found in India (in the mountainous regions of Sikkim and western Himalayas from Pithoragarh district of Uttar Pradesh), Bhutan, Nepal and China.

P. japonicum var major from Japan, P. vietnamensis (Vietnamese Ginseng) and Eleutherococcus senticosus (Siberian or Russian Ginseng) is an abundant and inexpensive substitute for ginseng and is cultivated in China for the roots which are tonic and sedative.