Description
Historic Edmonton Goji Berries
Goji berries are a woody brambling shrub in the Solanaceae (nightshade) family, along with potatoes, peppers, and eggplant. Grow Goji as a bush or train it along a trellis. Goji fruit is oblong and looks like a tiny Roma tomato or pepper, which is an appropriate comparison as the fruit is not overly sweet. Goji is commonly consumed in soups or raw, dried, and cooked.
Lycium spp.
- Hardiness: USDA Zone 3
- Size at Maturity: 8 feet tall and wide
- Edible, Flowering
- Self-Fertile,
- Locally Sourced Cuttings and Seeds
Wild Chinatown Goji Berries
Despite the popularity of Goji, most people are unaware of the local, hardy lineages of Goji naturalized across the City of Edmonton. According to the author Kathryn Chase-Merrit, in her book “Why Grow Here,” the Chinese community owned and operated as many as fifteen market gardens around the City – many located in Edmonton’s river valley. Among the plants that they would have grown were Goji.
Goji, imported by Edmonton’s Chinese community, continue to make its home on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River.
Kilkenny Goji Berries
Grown from seeds harvested from a 30-year-old plant in Kilkenny. Sadly, the parent plant was removed by new owners.
McCauley Qi Goji Berries
Cuttings from a Goji grown by a homeowner in the Edmonton neighbourhood of McCauley. The fruit is red, large, and slightly oval in appearance.
