They’re the latest ‘must have’ miracle berry in celebrity circles. Said to banish cellulite, boost your immune system, contain more vitamin C than oranges and more iron than steak, this Himalayan berry is quite a catch. There’s one problem though, they’re very expensive to buy. Good news then, that these little red berries can be grown in the UK’s climate easily, and you can eat piles of fresh goji berries throughout the summer months from just a few, small bushes.
Growing your own goji berries is not only kinder to your wallet; it’s kinder to the environment too. They are now commercially grown in China, Mongolia and Tibet. The food miles involved in shipping them over to health shops in the UK are quite substantial, so if you have room for a bush or two in your garden or on your balcony, they’ll be a wealth of benefits involved.
How to Grow Goji Berries
Once established, goji berries are incredibly easy to grow. They’ll grow in almost any type of soil, and can even thrive in poor soil, as they are used to the mountainous regions in the Himalayas. They are reasonably drought-tolerant, and will even grow in partial shade (though you’ll get more berries from them if you grow them in full sun).
You can grow them from seed, or buy them as young plants. Buying young plants is far easier, as goji berry seeds are prone to rot in the compost and you’re less likely to get good results. The seedlings also need to be kept in warm conditions for 12 months, so for practical reasons, buying young plants is the more sensible option.
Once they’re a year old, however, they are perfectly winter hardy. Unchecked, they grow into a thick bush that reaches up to three metres tall, with vines that can grow to nearly four metres. If regularly pruned, they will form attractive small bushes that produce more berries as a result.
Growing
When your plants first arrive it is likely they will just look like bare twigs with some roots on. Don’t worry, this is normal. If planted straight away and watered well they will grow leaves within two-three weeks. Dig a hole around 50cm deep and wide and place the goji berry plant in it.
Firm the soil around the plant and water well. Leave about 1m between plants and mulch the area around the stems with leafmoluld or garden compost to keep the soil moist and well-nourished. You can even grow the bushes into a goji berry hedge; simply plant them 1m apart in a straight line.
Flowers
After two years the bushes will start to fruit, and from four years you’ll start to get very heavy yields. In early summer the bushes will produce small, delicate, trumpet-shaped flowers that will be either white or purple. Both coloured flowers can feature on one plant, so they provide visual interest before the berry production begins.
The berries will begin to set in autumn. The ripe fruit are sweet and juicy and almost shiny in appearance. The flowers will continue to bloom right up until the first frosts, however, so your plants will be red, white and purple throughout late summer and autumn.
They are beautiful to have in your garden, delicious, nutritious, and cheap and easy to grow. If you want health-boosting berries on tap you should consider investing in a goji berry bush or two.
I am from Bahrain , which cold in winter and very hot and hummed in summer , can I grow Goji berry in my out door garden
FERASO - 29 January 2012 @ 6:16 AM
Pruning instructions urgently needed please
Phil - 20 January 2012 @ 10:38 PM
I purchased some fruit bushes/canes from Aldi in summer 2010, 1 of them was a Goji, I thought try something new.The first summer it produced no fruit, just more branches and leaves.This summer, it has more branches, some about 4/5ft long.tons of little flowers on it, and many have started forming into the berry.I read that they are supposed to do this in early summer, but mine is only doing it now at the end of August!I am not to bothered about maybe not getting any fruit from it this year, as it's sat in a pot of compost in the garden and left to get on with it.Next year I will plant it out in the ground with plenty of compost, manure, and oragnic slow release feed, and hopefully get a good crop of fruit next summer. I have recently purchased another another plant from Aldi, and that is growing well also.For the person who asked about taking cuttings, just youtube it, plenty of people have taken cuttings from them and planted them, they appear to grow very easily from cuttings.I would imagine that you take cuttings during the winter months when the plant goes dormant for the winter.
mr_popular - 29 August 2011 @ 9:40 PM
I have got a Gojiberry tree 3 years old no flowers or fruit yet grown stems 2.5 metres - what am I doing wrong?
shauny - 24 August 2011 @ 8:41 AM
I have got a Gojiberry tree two years old no flowers or fruit yet but it has thorns on it is that right?
rose - 16 August 2011 @ 7:42 PM
I've got four very well established goji berry shrubs. One suffers from a kind of mildew. How do I treat it? The others are huge they are very healthy & shoots go everywhere eg 4 metres high. However after 4 or 5 years I have never seen a flower nor had any fruit Why is this? should I prune them. They are in average soil which drains ok & they get plenty of sun. why don't they flower?
Dave Harness - 10 July 2011 @ 10:41 PM
I bought a Goji berry bush three years ago which I have in a large pot. Although it's grown quite large, it's quite straggly and has never flowered or produced any fruit. I've cut it back a couple of times but it's not helped. What am I doing wrong?
hcd - 11 June 2011 @ 2:27 PM
I have a Goji Berry Plant and I have been told that it has Botrytis Cinerea, which a grey mould that appears on the leaves. It has been recommended to use Oxidate on the internet, but this is only available in USA. Can you recommend a product that is available in the UK.
colin - 6 June 2011 @ 1:33 PM
Our goji bush is about two years old when do we prune please ?
petemos - 24 May 2011 @ 9:24 AM
I have grown three gogi berries from little twigs this year and they are doing very well. I have healthy long growth in ericasiouys soil in a large pot. I would like to know how to prune the bush in the first few years thank you.
mall - 11 May 2011 @ 5:41 PM
Could you please tell me when to prun the Goji Berry Bush and will it grow happily in a large pot
patsy - 25 April 2011 @ 10:06 PM
I have 4 year old gogi berry bush it's about 2 mts high 2 years ago we got loads of fruit last year nothing. Hoping for some this year, can I take cuttings and if so how?
ian - 24 April 2011 @ 11:35 AM
I'm thinking of buying a Goji Berry and was wondering if they are suitable for being pot grown?
titch - 17 April 2011 @ 11:36 PM
You have'nt told us when or how to prune our Goji berry bush after the first year of plalnting, mine has long and short stems, and is doing very well, although it looks straggly at the moment.
