Goji berries 'Firecracker' (Lycium barbarum)

Shrubby habit up to 2 m high and 1.5 m wide. Juicy and sweet oblong light red fruits. good fresh, canned, dried or frozen. Self-fertile. Flowering begins in the second year. Requires well-drained soil. It is hardy in zone 4a. Lyciets grow abundantly in northwest China: Gansu, Ningxia, Qinghai (northern Tibet), and Inner Mongolia.

Nutritional and medicinal value

For millennia, goji berries have been consumed in Asia and are renowned for their medicinal properties. They are believed to stimulate jing 精 and invigorate qi 气 (vital energy).

Relatively rich in vitamins, minerals and trace elements, the berry is often touted as a “superfruit.” It is also a very important source of antioxidants with a very high proportion of carotenoids but also with four polysaccharides (sugars) considered to be the active compounds responsible for the beneficial effects.

Goji berries contain:

18 kinds of amino acids, in quantities eight times greater than those found in pollen. They contain all eight essential amino acids, including tryptophan and isoleucine;
21 trace elements, from zinc to iron, copper, selenium and phosphorus;
more beta-carotene than carrots: 8.4mg versus 6.6mg per 100g
almost as much calcium as milk: 112.5mg compared to 120mg per 100g
more protein than wheat: 12.10g compared to 10.59g per 100g [ref. to confirm]
vitamins, including B1, B2, B6, C and E;
beta sitosterols, with anti-inflammatory properties.

Goji would strengthen the immune system (anti-inflammatory properties), lower blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels, improve calcium assimilation, and relieve the liver.

Goji is presented as being useful in cases of fatigue, weak immune system, hypertension, urinary infection, excess cholesterol, and prevention of eye disorders. Some Chinese researchers suppose that this berry is one of the foods that could delay cellular aging.

source : wikipedia