Where Did The Wolfberry Come From?

Wolfberry, whose scientific name is Lycium Barbarum, is commonly known as the goji berry. Although many people don't know, the Wolfberry has long been noted as a healthy food.

The Wolfberry was first mentioned in about 100 AD in a Farmer's Natural Medicine Guide. In A.D. 800, poet Liu Yuxi (772-842 A.D) penned a poem called "The Youthful Well" about the amazing wolfberry:

The Wolfberry is native to Mongolia, the Himalayan Mountain region, Asia, India and the Tibet region. In the 1700's, Archibald Campbell, a Duke of England transplanted the Wolfberry plant to his home country estate for a decorative plant in his gardens. However, because of the climate, the Wolfberry plants don't seem to have produced the English Duke any fruit. Thus, he never knew of the wonderful berry.

It seems the tribes of Asia also used the wolfberry profusely to maintain good health and longevity. Although we don't have much documentation of the effect of Goji, we are told that many tribes people lived century long lives. They lived healthy lives and the goji was just a part of a good, nutritious diet.

What Does a Wolfberry Plant Look Like?

Wolfberry plants grow in rows, mostly in the Himalaya Mountains or Tibet regions. They are a woody, deciduous perennial plant with oblong shiny green leaves. The pea-sized red berries grow in drooping clusters of eight to ten from violet or white flowers, which are cone shaped.

A Wolfberry grown in the Himalayan Mountains or Tibet regions have a slight difference in taste and quality. However, there are staggering differences in those grown in the West, like the United States, Mexico, etc. One of the major differences is the western grown wolfberry tastes bitter. However, the more importance difference is quality of the nutrition found in the berry itself. Those grown in the west are reported as having fewer nutrients, because of the cooler climates.

Where Do Wolfberries Grow?

Although they grow in many countries, they prefer hot, humid summers that are longer than those in the West. At the same time, Wolfberry plants thrive best when there is a biting cold winter so the plants have a deeper dormancy (rest). Because of the drastic climate changes needed for the plants to grow at their best, there are few places they can be sucessfully grown. As a result, most of the world's Goji berries are grown in the Tibet or Himalaya Mountain regions.

How Are Wolfberries Eaten?

Today, especially in North America, Goji berries are mostly eaten as a dried fruit. However around the world they are added to soupls, rice congee and vegetable dishes including wild yams and licorice roots. The Wolfberry is usually cooked with pork or chicken, if a meat is used.

Young wolfberry plant leaves are cooked as a green vegetable as we might cook collards or spinach. Wolfberry is also brewed as a tea, often with chrysanthemum flowers and/or red jujubes.