Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
kayan_gw

What is this precious veggie called? (Photos)

kayan
17 years ago

My parents start these guys every year, and this year I'm finding them annoying because they've been planted in such a manner that renders a lot of space useless. I can't plant anything in front of them because it would block the Sun (and the plants would die, of course), and my parents would kill me because the veggies are very herbal/medicinal.

I don't know the English name, and even the Chinese name eludes me at the moment. So... photos!

{{gwi:385833}}

{{gwi:385834}}

I reeeeally want to transplant these guys elsewhere.

Thanks in advance!

Comments (13)

  • barbara_in_la
    17 years ago

    Looking forward to hearing that answer, too!! My mom has some planted in her garden -- she makes some good soup with it! Barb

  • Violet_Z6
    17 years ago

    It is Lycium chinense and will do absolutely fine in part shade and probably better.

    There are existing threads here:

    Info Wanted: GoeGeai/Gouqi

    Stunned wolfberry seedling

    Kayan,
    This response should also take care of your question here..

  • kayan
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Oh! Talk about feeling foolish... here I am doing all this research on Gouqi and we have the plants already.

    Thanks Violet!

  • forever_a_newbie_VA8
    17 years ago

    Kayan:
    Your plants are lovely and your pictures give me an idea that I should also provide some support for the plants. Currently mine just crawl on the ground.

    Do your parents start them from seeds every year? This is a perenial plant isn't it?

    Do you have yours in the full sun? And what type of soil do you have? your soil looks light and even a little sandy to me. Do you add some ash in them? I might need to move mine to the sun. Currently they are shaded by a tree.

    Thanks,
    Changsong

  • Violet_Z6
    17 years ago

    Changsong,

    It is definitely perennial and I do not recommend growing this plant in full sun. It does much better in part shade.

    Feel free to prune all branches to a foot or two from the soil line. There is no reason to let it crawl if you don't want it to. You can harvest what you prune for soup, dry the leaves for future use. And if the stems are woody stems from last year, you can root them for more plants. If you need more advice on anything, feel free to ask.

  • forever_a_newbie_VA8
    17 years ago

    Thanks Violet.

    I gave the plants a hair cut a while ago as you suggested, but I guess I should have done it harder. I replanted the cuttings and a lot of them seem to do fine. After I get more plants, I will try to put some in the sun. But the mother plant will stay in partial shade.

    Changsong

  • kayan
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Changsong,

    My parents start them every year with cuttings. I think they either get the cuttings from friends or from the Chinatown stores. They buy the produce and save the woodiest stems- give them about three or four inches- wrap most of it in a wet paper towel, and stash them in a styrofoam cup.

    The reason they have to start the plants every year is because come Summer or so they're hit hard by powdery mildew. I haven't seen it with my own eyes, but they say it's impossible to save the plants then.

    The plants are currently in full Sun, and they're planted against the northern fence. We do have a shadier part of the garden, but they've tried there and it didn't work. Something about the previous house owner dumping the laundry water there and rendering the soil useless. We're going to change the soil there soon, so maybe we can get a permanent plant going.

    The soil is actually very clay. It's all dried up and windswept (we have very high winds all Summer) so maybe that's why it looks sandy. I'm working on amending the soil in the entire garden.

  • forever_a_newbie_VA8
    17 years ago

    Thanks Kayan for the detailed information.
    Changsong

  • Violet_Z6
    17 years ago

    Kayan,

    If your parents have a problem with powdery mildew, they need to change the location of their plantings. The area is not getting enough ventilation and sun or they are planted near plants that are prone to the problem such as phlox, roses, or zinnias. Avoid overhead watering.

  • melchat
    17 years ago

    I have heard of spraying such vulnerable plants with 1 T.
    baking soda to 1 gal. water to prevent mildew. It could
    be 2 T., but I'm not sure. -- Good luck -- Mel

  • Violet_Z6
    17 years ago

    Actually, milk is better.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Organic control of Powdery Mildew

  • kayan
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Changsong, no problem!

    Thanks, melchat and violet for the suggestions.

    Actually, it's really odd because the area where the plants are is very windy- the entire back yard is- and in full sun. There are also no plants nearby, so I don't understand how it could be that every year powdery mildew would attack the plants. The only thing I can think of is that our neighbors' plants must attract spores a lot and my parents have watered the leaves. Guess we'll see this year.

  • chaman
    17 years ago

    Have you tried it planting in a pot and raised the plant indoor? This will rule out the problem you may be facing from your neighbour.

Sponsored