Goji berry

Sun

Full sun gives the best flowering and fruiting; tolerates light shade.

Water

Water regularly during establishment and fruit development, letting the soil surface dry between waterings. Established plants tolerate some drought.

Soil

Well-drained soil, including sandy, chalky or moderately poor soil; avoid waterlogged ground.

Height

6-10 ft (1.8-3 m)

Spread

4-8 ft (1.2-2.4 m), wider if suckers are left unchecked

Flowers

Small purple to lilac flowers from late spring through summer, sometimes continuing into autumn.

Foliage

Narrow, grey-green leaves on long, arching shoots; stems may carry thorns.

Growth

Fast once established

Care needed

Medium

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Heat tolerant
• Wildlife
• Low allergen
• Edible

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Moderate

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   1.6 ft (0.5 m)

2. After 1 year

   4 ft (1.1 m)

3. After 2 years

   5 ft (1.7 m)

4. After 3 years

   7 ft (2.3 m)

5. After 5 years

   8 ft (2.4 m)

   full size

About 3 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Mildly toxic: may upset a stomach

In the garden

Spreads vigorously: plan to contain it.

Growth rate

Fast

• Water deeply during dry spells in the first growing season and while berries are swelling.
• Apply compost in spring; avoid heavy nitrogen feeding, which encourages leafy growth rather than fruit.
• Mulch the root area, keeping mulch clear of the stem bases.
• Tie long stems to sturdy wires or a trellis to keep fruit off the ground.
• Remove unwanted root suckers promptly and keep branches from rooting where they touch soil.

Pruning. In late winter, remove dead, damaged and crowded stems, retaining a framework of well-spaced branches. Shorten last season's side shoots to encourage fresh fruiting growth, and replace a few old stems at the base as the shrub ages.

Pick berries from summer into autumn when they are fully orange-red, soft and easily released; avoid green or partly coloured fruit. Handle gently because ripe berries bruise easily. Expect the first worthwhile crop about 2-3 years after planting, sometimes longer in cool summers.

Late winter

Prune the framework and remove dead wood before growth starts.

Spring

Plant in well-drained ground, apply compost and refresh mulch.

Late spring

Tie in new shoots and inspect young growth for aphids.

Summer

Water during prolonged dry spells and remove unwanted suckers.

Late summer

Pick fully ripe berries regularly as they colour and soften.

Autumn

Finish harvesting and remove fallen diseased leaves.

• Train against wires along a sunny boundary to make harvesting easier.
• Use in a dedicated berry bed with enough space to control suckers.
• Include in an informal edible hedge, away from narrow paths because of the thorns.
• Grow behind low herbs in a productive garden, where its loose outline softens supports.

Garden styles it suits: Potager (kitchen garden), Edible landscape, Homestead, Food forest, Cottage garden and Native hedgerow.

Plant it with: Chives, Thyme, Oregano, Lavender and Calendula.

Wildlife: Flowers attract bees and other pollinating insects. Birds eat ripe berries and may spread the seed.

• Powdery mildew: thin crowded stems, provide good airflow and avoid drought stress.
• Aphids: wash colonies from young shoots with water and encourage ladybirds and other predators.
• Poor fruiting: provide full sun, avoid excessive nitrogen and allow young plants time to establish.
• Unwanted spread: dig out suckers with their connecting roots and prevent low branches from rooting.

Fully ripe berries are edible for people. Avoid eating unripe berries or unidentified leaves and stems; their safety should not be assumed from the edible fruit. Reliable species-specific toxicity information for cats, dogs and horses is limited, so keep pets and livestock from browsing it. Goji products can interact with warfarin.

Where it spreads. Spreads by root suckers, rooting stems and bird-carried seed. It is naturalised in parts of the United Kingdom, continental Europe and North America and can form persistent local thickets; check local guidance before planting near natural areas.

• Chinese wolfberry (Lycium chinense)

  Very similar and also sold as goji. It generally has broader leaves and a flower calyx with 3-5 lobes, whereas L. barbarum usually has a two-lobed calyx; reliable identification may require close examination.

• Bittersweet nightshade (Solanum dulcamara)

  A scrambling plant with broad, sometimes lobed leaves and purple flowers with strongly swept-back petals around a yellow cone. Its red berries are poisonous and must not be harvested as goji.

The common name goji comes from the Chinese name gouqi.

Propagation. Take hardwood cuttings during dormancy or softwood cuttings in early summer, or separate rooted suckers. Seed-grown plants vary in fruit quality and may take longer to crop.

Accepted botanical name

Lycium barbarum

In the US and Canada

Introduced in Canada and the lower 48 states.

Native range

China North-Central, China South-Central, Inner Mongolia, Qinghai and Xinjiang.

Measured

Soil pH 7 to 7.5. Average height 200 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.