A Detailed Guide to Planting Goji Berry Seeds After They Sprout

Plants of the genus Lycium (goji berry), which have the largest cultivated area in China, are mainly distributed in the northwest region of China. The common species in other regions is Lycium chinense and its varieties. Today we will introduce how to plant goji berry seeds after they sprout.

1. How to plant goji berry seeds after they sprout?

Sowing can be done in both spring and summer, with spring being the best. To improve the germination rate, the seeds can be stratified in sand to promote sprouting before planting, and sowing is done when more than 50% of the seeds have sprouted. After sowing, cover with a thin layer of soil and water on schedule; sprouts appear in about a week.

2. How do you tell good goji berries from bad ones?

1. Color

Fresh goji berries vary in color depending on the place of origin, but the color is very soft, glossy, and the flesh is plump; dyed goji berries, on the other hand, are mostly old stock from previous years, and visually their flesh is poorer and lacks luster, while the exterior is very bright and tempting, so when buying goji berries, be sure not to be greedy for “color”.

2. Shape

Since ancient times, goji berries from Ningxia have been regarded as the local medicinal material with the highest medicinal value. Most Ningxia goji berries have a small white dot at the tip, which goji berries from other regions do not have; the proportion of Ningxia goji berries with a white dot at the tip can reach 85%.

3. Smell

For goji berries that have been fumigated with sulfur, you only need to grab a handful, cover them with both hands for a while, and then hold them under your nose to smell; if you can detect a pungent, irritating odor, then you can be sure they have been fumigated with sulfur.

4. Taste

Ningxia goji berries are sweet, tasting especially sweet, but after eating them there is a slight bitterness in the throat; goji berries from Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and other places are so sweet they are a bit cloying; goji berries soaked in alum will have the bitter taste of alum when chewed; and as for goji berries treated with sulfur, the taste is sour, astringent, and bitter.

If “goji berry” refers to the commercial product “goji berry”, then it basically refers to the dried mature fruit sourced from Lycium barbarum; if “goji berry” refers to wild goji berry plants in regions other than the northwest, then it is basically Lycium chinense or Lycium chinense var. potaninii.