Goji berry 50+ seeds {Lycium chinense} Heirloom NON-GMO | Edible| Medicinal | Drought Tolerant | Free Shipping! Common Name: Chinese desert-thorn Type: Deciduous shrub Family: Solanaceae Zone: 6 to 9 Height: 3.00 to 6.00 feet Spread: 3.00 to 10.00 feet Bloom Time: May to August Bloom Description: Light purple Sun: Full sun Water: Medium Maintenance: Medium Suggested Use: Hedge, Naturalize Flower: Showy Attracts: Birds Fruit: Showy, Edible Other: Thorns Tolerate: Drought, Erosion Garden locations Culture Grow in moderately fertile, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun. Plants tolerate some light shade. Established plants tolerate some drought. May be grown from seed. Where winter hardy, this shrub will naturalize by self seeding (sometimes aggressively) and by suckering. Stems may be pruned back to 2' tall in late winter each year to keep plants at a reasonable size with less sprawling. If grown for fruit production, branches may be attached to a trellis to facilitate harvest. Noteworthy Characteristics Lycium chinense, commonly called Chinese matrimony vine, Chinese boxthorn, Goji berry and Chinese wolfberry, is a vine-like, multi-stemmed, deciduous shrub with sprawling branches that typically grows to 3-6' (sometimes to 12') tall. Occasional thorns appear on the stems. It is native to slopes, roadsides, disturbed areas and wastelands in southern China. Ovate, rhombic, elliptic or lanceolate leaves (to 1-3" long) are bright green. Small, tubular, pale purple to lavender flowers bloom in spring on stalks rising from the leaf axils. Bright red berries (Goji berries) are about 7/8" long and mature in fall. Ripe berries are edible (sweet licorice flavor). Berries (fresh or dried), young shoots and leaves are used in oriental cooking. Berries are used to make an herbal tea. Berries are dried for herbal use (China reportedly produces over 5 million kilograms of dried fruit per year). This is a long time medicinal plant (leaves, roots and berries) in China.