Lycium Barbarum: Goji to You
Acai and pomegranate are not really a perfect superfood, as neither will grow in your backyard. The real superfood is Lycium barbarum, also known as goji, or wolfberry. Call it what you want, but for me it is the perfect Superfood. The entire plant has nutritional or medicinal value, and it will grow anywhere in the United States, including Hawaii and Alaska.
What’s in a Name?
Goji, wolfberry, Lycium barbarum, Lycium chinense, matrimony vine, boxthorn, and English Teaberry are all names commonly ascribed to plants in the genus Lycium. Goji and wolfberry, as names, really don’t get to the nitty gritty of identifying plants to grow in your backyard or garden. Sparkle and Ogallala are both varieties of strawberries. Each variety of strawberries has its special characteristics. Unfortunately, most suppliers of goji plants can’t identify the species, let alone the variety they are selling.
Ningxia, a province in China, is touted as the goji capital of the world. Here goji have been grown for centuries, and many varieties have been established. Some are raised for fruit production, others for leaf production. Many health food vendors indicate that their product came from Ningxia, and therefore their product is the best in the world. Not to belittle either the vendor or our friends in China, but are you importing Sparkle or some other variety?
What there is agreement on is that Lycium barbarum is a better species than Lycium chinense, if for no other reason than barbarum consistently has a higher ORAC (oxygen radical absorption capacity) than chinense, and is less thorny.
No matter what name they go by, the fruit, leaves, stems, and roots of all varieties have food or medicinal value.
What To Look For
When purchasing plants, start by determining if the plants are identified as Lycium barbarum. This is most often based upon a statement that the plants or seed came from Ningxia, and were originally purchased as L. barbarum. L. barbarum plants are self pollinating, so it is expected that there would be little variability in seeds due to cross pollination. Chance mutations are unlikely to show up in small numbers of seeds. Plants are not commercially grown from seeds in China or the United States. They are grown from root starts or cuttings, so all are genetically like their parents.
Within the species barbarum there are many varieties, each with different characteristics. Though unnamed by variety, most plants previously available from U.S. nurseries were of varieties that were hardy only through Hardiness Zone 5. There are now varieties available, which are hardy through Zone 3, and also those, that also do well in the far south.
Fruit size, quantity, and nutrient quality also vary from variety to variety. Unless a vendor has conducted tests on a certain variety of plants, claims for productivity and nutrients may come out of reference books. Plant varieties raised for leaf production may be very poor fruit producing plants, however, most varieties with high fruit nutrients also have high leaf nutrient levels. If you want it all, get a high fruit yield variety and there will be plenty of stems and leaves for vegetables and tea.
What and When to Plant
Goji can be grown from seeds. In fact, nearly all the seeds from dried fruit in health food stores will germinate, even after years of storage. If the fruit looks and tastes good, the seed may produce productive plants, however, you won’t know until at least three years after planting the seeds. Seeds should be planted in high ph soil in a greenhouse, spending their first two years there. Planted outside a greenhouse the third spring, they may produce fruit the fourth year.
It is best to buy bare root or potted plants from a source that can specify species and variety, with some data on hardiness and nutrient content. In the north, bare root starts planted in the spring, depending on variety, may produce some fruit by fall, and a good crop the second summer. In Hardiness Zone 6 and higher, bare root plants can be planted two weeks before the last expected frost and up to a month before the first expected heavy frost. In zone 6 and higher they can be planted anytime.
Planting
Newly planted starts should be kept moist until well leafed out, after which they become very drought hardy and require little water. L. barbarum can be grown in large pots or containers, as yard shrubbery, hedges, or in rows in the garden. Plants should be spaced about two feet apart with at least five feet between rows. A 30-foot row with 15 plants has the potential of producing 100 pounds of fruit annually and all the leaf and stem material you might want for vegetables and tea.
Vines will grow ten to thirteen feet long if not pruned. Pruning promotes stem proliferation. This is desirable as the fruit is formed on new growth. Vines may be trained on trellises as with grape vines, or pruned to a central leader that forms a hardwood trunk. After a few years of pruning an eye level canopy of vines can be produced for easy berry picking. Pruning is also a factor in controlling thorniness. Thorns are more prevalent in older growth.
What’s in a Name?
Goji, wolfberry, Lycium barbarum, Lycium chinense, matrimony vine, boxthorn, and English Teaberry are all names commonly ascribed to plants in the genus Lycium. Goji and wolfberry, as names, really don’t get to the nitty gritty of identifying plants to grow in your backyard or garden. Sparkle and Ogallala are both varieties of strawberries. Each variety of strawberries has its special characteristics. Unfortunately, most suppliers of goji plants can’t identify the species, let alone the variety they are selling.
Ningxia, a province in China, is touted as the goji capital of the world. Here goji have been grown for centuries, and many varieties have been established. Some are raised for fruit production, others for leaf production. Many health food vendors indicate that their product came from Ningxia, and therefore their product is the best in the world. Not to belittle either the vendor or our friends in China, but are you importing Sparkle or some other variety?
What there is agreement on is that Lycium barbarum is a better species than Lycium chinense, if for no other reason than barbarum consistently has a higher ORAC (oxygen radical absorption capacity) than chinense, and is less thorny.
No matter what name they go by, the fruit, leaves, stems, and roots of all varieties have food or medicinal value.
What To Look For
When purchasing plants, start by determining if the plants are identified as Lycium barbarum. This is most often based upon a statement that the plants or seed came from Ningxia, and were originally purchased as L. barbarum. L. barbarum plants are self pollinating, so it is expected that there would be little variability in seeds due to cross pollination. Chance mutations are unlikely to show up in small numbers of seeds. Plants are not commercially grown from seeds in China or the United States. They are grown from root starts or cuttings, so all are genetically like their parents.
Within the species barbarum there are many varieties, each with different characteristics. Though unnamed by variety, most plants previously available from U.S. nurseries were of varieties that were hardy only through Hardiness Zone 5. There are now varieties available, which are hardy through Zone 3, and also those, that also do well in the far south.
Fruit size, quantity, and nutrient quality also vary from variety to variety. Unless a vendor has conducted tests on a certain variety of plants, claims for productivity and nutrients may come out of reference books. Plant varieties raised for leaf production may be very poor fruit producing plants, however, most varieties with high fruit nutrients also have high leaf nutrient levels. If you want it all, get a high fruit yield variety and there will be plenty of stems and leaves for vegetables and tea.
What and When to Plant
Goji can be grown from seeds. In fact, nearly all the seeds from dried fruit in health food stores will germinate, even after years of storage. If the fruit looks and tastes good, the seed may produce productive plants, however, you won’t know until at least three years after planting the seeds. Seeds should be planted in high ph soil in a greenhouse, spending their first two years there. Planted outside a greenhouse the third spring, they may produce fruit the fourth year.
It is best to buy bare root or potted plants from a source that can specify species and variety, with some data on hardiness and nutrient content. In the north, bare root starts planted in the spring, depending on variety, may produce some fruit by fall, and a good crop the second summer. In Hardiness Zone 6 and higher, bare root plants can be planted two weeks before the last expected frost and up to a month before the first expected heavy frost. In zone 6 and higher they can be planted anytime.
Planting
Newly planted starts should be kept moist until well leafed out, after which they become very drought hardy and require little water. L. barbarum can be grown in large pots or containers, as yard shrubbery, hedges, or in rows in the garden. Plants should be spaced about two feet apart with at least five feet between rows. A 30-foot row with 15 plants has the potential of producing 100 pounds of fruit annually and all the leaf and stem material you might want for vegetables and tea.
Vines will grow ten to thirteen feet long if not pruned. Pruning promotes stem proliferation. This is desirable as the fruit is formed on new growth. Vines may be trained on trellises as with grape vines, or pruned to a central leader that forms a hardwood trunk. After a few years of pruning an eye level canopy of vines can be produced for easy berry picking. Pruning is also a factor in controlling thorniness. Thorns are more prevalent in older growth.
Harvesting and Storage
Nutrient values change slightly as fruit ripens from orange to bright red. For example, sugar content increases, protein content drops significantly, as does calcium content. B vitamins decrease, vitamin C increases, and Beta-carotene decreases. Fully ripe fruit is less bitter, but is very fragile and easily bruised. My picking preference is to let the fruit at the base of a frond get fully ripe and then pick both orange and red fruit, resulting in a mix of nutrients. Picked fruit is washed and floated in cold water, where stems, leaf fragments, and any discolored fruit can be removed.
Washed fruit can be used fresh, dried, or frozen. Fresh fruit should be refrigerated and can be kept for a week or more in the refrigerator. Fruit can also be dried in a dehydrator or set out on racks to be sun dried in a fly free environment. I use an Excalibur dehydrator for drying. Set at 100 degrees, fruit takes 3 or more days to dry. Drying at a higher temperature may destroy some nutrients. Dried fruit tends to stick to the drying racks and can be quite sticky to the touch. Drying only fully ripe fruit that has not been washed can reduce this problem.
Outdoor rack drying is much more energy efficient and if drying large amounts of fruit, is almost a necessity. If nighttime temperatures are much cooler than daytime temperatures, fruit should be covered or brought in during the night to avoid morning dew formation. Berries are sufficiently dry when they reach raisin-like consistency. They should be stored in airtight containers in a cool dry environment. They will keep for years.
Washed fruit can be placed in freezer bags and laid out in a freezer for quick freezing. I prefer to use the one or two quart size freezer bags, and fill so that when laid out flat the contents are an inch or less in thickness. In this way they freeze quickly, yet bags can be opened and any amount of fruit easily removed. We have no data on nutrient loss in frozen fruit over time, but fruit that has been in the freezer for three years still looks and tastes as good as fresh fruit.
Leaves and young stems can be harvested throughout the growing season. Heavy spring and summer pruning will promote new leaf and stem growth. Stems for vegetable use should still be totally green and show no woodiness. Stems six inches or less in length are the most tender. Leaves can be left on stems and the entire stem can be used for a vegetable or dried for later use. Leaves and stems are dried in a dehydrator at 105 degrees and take less than 12 hours to dry. Dried product should be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Dried stems and leaves can also be powdered in a blender. I use the dry container for my Vita Mix blender to powder leaves and stems. This premium product takes up less storage room.
If growing plants for both fruit and leaves, the best time to harvest the leaves is late fall, after the majority of the fruit season is over. Wolfberries are deciduous and lose their leaves in the fall. Strip all leaves from the vines before the first really hard frost and dry them for tea. Older leaves may be dried and powdered for vegetable use, but are not tender enough to use as fresh vegetables. Leaves are easily stripped off the stems by starting at the base and pulling toward the tip. Wear leather gloves to avoid the occasional thorn. If you harvest leaves from first year growth, no stickers will be encountered. Leaves may be used fresh, dried, powdered or frozen. Leaves for fresh use should not be washed before placing in the refrigerator. Wash the leaves when ready to use in a recipe. Leaves for drying should be washed and spread on drying racks. The liquid in other recipe components usually rehydrates dried leaves used for vegetables.
Root bark is antibacterial, hepatic, and hypoglycemic and has been used to treat hypertension, diabetes, and an aid in lowering blood pressure. Root bark is best harvested in early spring. Bark is peeled off the roots and is then dried.
In the Blender Wolfberry Blender Muffins
2 lg eggs
1/8 cup milk
1 cup applesauce
1 cup fresh or frozen wolfberries
1 Tbsp vanilla
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup diced ginger
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup old fashioned oatmeal
Place ingredients in blender in the order listed. Blend to smooth consistency. Pour into well greased muffin tins and bake at 400 degrees for 23 minutes. Makes 12 muffins
Nutrient values change slightly as fruit ripens from orange to bright red. For example, sugar content increases, protein content drops significantly, as does calcium content. B vitamins decrease, vitamin C increases, and Beta-carotene decreases. Fully ripe fruit is less bitter, but is very fragile and easily bruised. My picking preference is to let the fruit at the base of a frond get fully ripe and then pick both orange and red fruit, resulting in a mix of nutrients. Picked fruit is washed and floated in cold water, where stems, leaf fragments, and any discolored fruit can be removed.
Washed fruit can be used fresh, dried, or frozen. Fresh fruit should be refrigerated and can be kept for a week or more in the refrigerator. Fruit can also be dried in a dehydrator or set out on racks to be sun dried in a fly free environment. I use an Excalibur dehydrator for drying. Set at 100 degrees, fruit takes 3 or more days to dry. Drying at a higher temperature may destroy some nutrients. Dried fruit tends to stick to the drying racks and can be quite sticky to the touch. Drying only fully ripe fruit that has not been washed can reduce this problem.
Outdoor rack drying is much more energy efficient and if drying large amounts of fruit, is almost a necessity. If nighttime temperatures are much cooler than daytime temperatures, fruit should be covered or brought in during the night to avoid morning dew formation. Berries are sufficiently dry when they reach raisin-like consistency. They should be stored in airtight containers in a cool dry environment. They will keep for years.
Washed fruit can be placed in freezer bags and laid out in a freezer for quick freezing. I prefer to use the one or two quart size freezer bags, and fill so that when laid out flat the contents are an inch or less in thickness. In this way they freeze quickly, yet bags can be opened and any amount of fruit easily removed. We have no data on nutrient loss in frozen fruit over time, but fruit that has been in the freezer for three years still looks and tastes as good as fresh fruit.
Leaves and young stems can be harvested throughout the growing season. Heavy spring and summer pruning will promote new leaf and stem growth. Stems for vegetable use should still be totally green and show no woodiness. Stems six inches or less in length are the most tender. Leaves can be left on stems and the entire stem can be used for a vegetable or dried for later use. Leaves and stems are dried in a dehydrator at 105 degrees and take less than 12 hours to dry. Dried product should be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Dried stems and leaves can also be powdered in a blender. I use the dry container for my Vita Mix blender to powder leaves and stems. This premium product takes up less storage room.
If growing plants for both fruit and leaves, the best time to harvest the leaves is late fall, after the majority of the fruit season is over. Wolfberries are deciduous and lose their leaves in the fall. Strip all leaves from the vines before the first really hard frost and dry them for tea. Older leaves may be dried and powdered for vegetable use, but are not tender enough to use as fresh vegetables. Leaves are easily stripped off the stems by starting at the base and pulling toward the tip. Wear leather gloves to avoid the occasional thorn. If you harvest leaves from first year growth, no stickers will be encountered. Leaves may be used fresh, dried, powdered or frozen. Leaves for fresh use should not be washed before placing in the refrigerator. Wash the leaves when ready to use in a recipe. Leaves for drying should be washed and spread on drying racks. The liquid in other recipe components usually rehydrates dried leaves used for vegetables.
Root bark is antibacterial, hepatic, and hypoglycemic and has been used to treat hypertension, diabetes, and an aid in lowering blood pressure. Root bark is best harvested in early spring. Bark is peeled off the roots and is then dried.
In the Blender Wolfberry Blender Muffins
2 lg eggs
1/8 cup milk
1 cup applesauce
1 cup fresh or frozen wolfberries
1 Tbsp vanilla
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup diced ginger
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup old fashioned oatmeal
Place ingredients in blender in the order listed. Blend to smooth consistency. Pour into well greased muffin tins and bake at 400 degrees for 23 minutes. Makes 12 muffins