Although many online stores market “Wild American Ginseng or Wild Wisconsin Ginseng”, most if not all are fakes. When you decide to invest or purchase a Wild American ginseng, the Rule of Thumb is ” Do not buy it if you do not see the Rhizome or root-neck with more than 5 or more scars!”
Please keep in mind that wild ginseng does undergo dormancy due to lack of sunlight and/or nutrients as well as pest damage. The scars you count is the minimum age, underestimating the real age by 25~40%.
Here is how you count the scars of the root-neck (from DCNR, Pennsylvania):