Goji Berries Lycium barbarum


Lycium barbarum
Goji Berries
  • Common Names
  • Goji Berries , Lycii berry, Boxberry, Boxthorn, Wolfberry
  • Botanical Name
  • Lycium barbarum
  • Syn. Lycium chinense
  • Family
  • SOLANACEAE

Medicinal Uses & Benefits of Goji Berries

remedyHow to Use| Side Effects | Plant & Garden|

How to Use: Goji Berries


Goji berries are high in the ranks of superfruits along with the acai berry, the pomegranate, and Tahitian noni juice, touted for their health-boosting powers. These fruits are valued for their nutritive and antioxidant properties. There has not been much research done on this herb, but it's historical use in traditional Chinese medicine and makes it an important botanical to watch. Goji are also called Chinese wolfberries and are an important part of Eastern cuisine. You'll find them at Asian grocery stores often for much less than health food or herb suppliers.

Preparation Methods & Dosage :Eaten as food, or prepared as tea


Traditional Chinese Medicine traditional Chinese medicine A yin cooling tonic. Goji berries are valued in Chinese medicine and are used to strengthen the immune system, as a sexual tonic, improve vision, and as a liver and kidney tonic.

Goji Berries Side Effects: Lycii berries contains betaine, which is an emmenagogue and abortifacient. Avoid using when pregnant or nursing. Chinese herbalists suggest to abstain using it during times of cold and flu

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Plant Description


  • Flowers:Bell shaped lavender flowers
  • Plant Class:Perennial Shrub
  • Leaves: Alternate, lanceolate leaves with rounded tips
  • Fruit: Bright, orange-red, ellipsoid berry with numerous tiny yellow seeds
  • Preferred Habitat:
  • Flowering Season:The berries ripen from July to October
  • Distribution:China, southwest Asia
  • Wolfberry species are deciduous woody perennial shrubs, growing 1-3 m high. L. chinense (is grown in the south of China and tends to be somewhat shorter, while L. barbarum is grown in the north, primarily in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and tends to be somewhat taller. The two varieties are used interchangeably. The only discernible difference is that Gojii is usually a high altitude strain of Lycium and is commonly found in the Himalayas, Nepal, Tibet, etc., whereas Lycii berry is the more common variety found in lowland areas.

Regional Traditions :Traditional Chinese Medicine *