A Short History of Phoenix Tears Nursery

All good stories begin, “Once upon a time.” This story began long ago in China, but we pick it up in the mid 1800s. At that time many Chinese came to America. Some panned for gold. Others set up laundries and food businesses. Over 10,000 were recruited to help build the transcontinental railroad. They had a reputation for being very hardy and good workers, setting the record of building over ten miles of track in one day. Their Irish and German counterparts working on the east leg of the railroad could not match that feat. The Chinese had a different diet, which included fresh chicken, fruits, vegetables, rice, dried seafood, and wolfberries. The evidence of their skill still can be found in Utah’s West Desert.

Culvert: Can you imagine placing these rocks by hand?

These rocks were put in place over 150 years ago.

Railroad Cut: All these were dug with picks and shovels.

The east-west branches of the transcontinental railroad met at Promontory Point, Utah on May 10, 1869. Most workers returned to San Francisco, but some stayed on and worked at way stations between Kelton and Lucin. Kelton, once a thriving town at the junction of the railroad and stagecoach connections to the north, is now virtually gone. The largest camp of Chinese workers was just west of Kelton at Sinks of Dove Creek.

Kelton Today:

Generally the Chinese labor camps were kept separate from the white settlements and camps. Graveyards still exist for white workers and families, but there is no evidence of cemeteries for the thousands of Chinese that died. Many dead were brought to the Sinks of Dove Creek camp and sent by rail to San Francisco, to then be sent home to China. Most had no recorded name or record of home origin. There are stories about the spirits of these people linger at Sinks of Dove Creek. They are still waiting to go home.

Looking south toward Sinks of Dove Creek.

Grave marker in Kelton cemetery.

Either intentionally planted or dropped along the way some wolfberries began to grow along the rail line. One site where they are found is near Promontory Point, where the east-west rail lines met. Birds may have carried seeds dropped by the railroad workers or were intentionally planted by the Chinese. Early settlers may have found the plants and transferred them to their homesteads. Phoenix Tears wolfberries were discovered growing on a ranch near Sinks of Dove Creek. Though near the Chinese camp, it is not known how the plants got there.

Original source of Phantom Tears wolfberries.

Very old plant with trunk to the ground, but invading rotting shingles

Plants from the ranch site were transplanted on the Phoenix Tears Nursery property in 2004. This variety has been DNA tested and compared to the DNA of plants raised from seed. The seed for these plants was purchased and was listed as having originated in Ningxia, China. The DNA match is virtually identical, with only one marker in thousands being different in the two plants (see Nutrient Profile for detailed description of DNA analysis). The DNA match strengthens the assumption that the plants now propagated by Phoenix Tears Nursery were the result of Chinese railroad worker diet, and that the original plants survived in the West Desert for over 150 years with no care, little water and animal grazing. The DNA match and the outward plant characteristics indicate that our plants are a varietal form of Lycium barbarum.

Grandpa Wolfberry: West Desert plant with trunk and current years’ growth.

Other than for the rancher’s dog and personal use, Phoenix Tears Nursery has exclusive right to the variety now being cultivated for sale. The ranch owners receive a royalty on every plant sold.

Dog Gone Good: not a wolf, but a smart dog

The original starts from the West Desert ranch were transplanted in the spring of 2004. These plants produced a small fruit crop the first summer and a much larger crop the second year. These plants have produced a heavy crop each year since, with the exception of 2009 when the early June blossoms were destroyed by hail. They produce until hard frost in the fall.

Berries on the Vine

Ready to Eat

Starts were placed about two feet apart in the rows with six feet between rows. In a year all the spaces between the plants were filled in with new growth.

New Growth Between Original Plants

New shoots that appear between the rows or between the plants can be pulled and replanted to expand number of plants (See Grower’s Guide for details). Tilling between the rows and watering stimulates new shoot production. The original thirty-foot row produced over 1000 new shoots the summer of 2009. The good news is that it is easy to get lots of plants. The bad news is that wolfberries can be invasive and hard to remove once established.

Most regular Phoenix Tears bare rootstock comes from the West Desert ranch site. Starts for shipment are collected, trimmed and hormone treated before shipment. These starts and others produced at the nursery are field and pot grown for the other grades of bare root and potted plants sold by Phoenix Tears Nursery.

Starts in Hormone Solution

Field Grown Plants

Greenhouse Plants

Six week old greenhouse starts.

Our largest bare root plants (Super Deluxe) are planted as regular starts in the spring, grown to fruiting size in the fall of the first year, and are sold as pruned, bare root stock in the spring of the second year. These are all grown at the West Desert ranch.

Three month old super deluxe plants.

The Phantom Voices section of this web site is a historical fiction account of how wolfberries came to America. The Phoenix was a female goddess who, along with the Dragon created all plants and animals. The dragon, Lung, still watches over the West Desert where so many Chinese railroad workers died. The Phoenix was a beautiful pheasant-like creature. She is now our logo, and the inspiration for placing a nearly perfect food source in every American backyard. She freely offers the perfect food.

The dragon watches over the Sinks of Dove Creek.

The Phoenix offers perfection.

Dog Gone Good Dog Dessert