Turns out Lycium Barbarum is actually pretty sweet. Where Lycium Chinense is so bad even the birds don't like em. What varieties of these are you growing?

I have sweet lifeberry and big lifeberry. The big is not very good tasting at all. It tastes almost like an under ripe pepper without the heat? The sweet lifeberry is better tasting, but not real great.

A bird spitting it out! That's hallarious. I tried growing it from seeds and gave up. Now as you said perhaps there's hope.
Thanks for a very informative video.

I might just have to dig mine up and replace it with a crimson star or phoenix tears. I've been eating them anyway even though theyre terrible. For healths sake I guess. They're taking over my little berry patch I have them in, which I wouldn't mind if they tasted good.
Thanks for the video and Ross

You're welcome Travis. I wish I knew this before I bought Sweet Lifeberry. See this thread for more info: http://growingfruit.org/t/does-anyone-like-goji-berries/908/12

Not sure which variety I have but yes they taste really bad fresh off the plant. I do have some that are drying and you can taste the sweetness coming out every day they get drier. I did not know they would put out so much fruit in their first year planted. The plants are loaded!

Not sure. Bought one from home Depot. .. has lots of flowers... lots are drying up as well :( also bought 3 from a local nursery but they don't know the variety. Recently went to Denver they have some life berry that had small fruits. .. was real tempted to buy one but I think I should wait and see what mine produce

Thank you for the pepper reference. I had that in my head when I tasted them on my bush ... And for 3 years, I've been thinking: They'll get better ... next year.
Well, the bush has more berries this year, but still not there; not even taking the bad taste into account ... So compost it'll go... I think.
I'll take some pics of my bush so that you can see how big they get and how long the branches grow. Mine is more a bush of flowers than a bush of fruits unfortunately ... But bees like sticking around it.
Mine is growing in an umbrella shape, since it should help her produce more, and take less space.
Your berries look bigger than the ones on my bush. The smallish size is a killer too - I'm really supposed to harvest that ???

jds,

You've definitely got Lycium Chinense. Grab yourself a Barbarum, wait until they dry on the plant, then eat them like raisins. Definitely tasty that way with no pepper taste to them at all.

Proven winners are calling their goji barbarum even tho it came from China. .. anyone have a website to go to to get the other kind? The other 3 plants I got from nursery would hopefully fruit next year hopefully it's the sweeter kind

I've read that Lycium chinense is hardy to 4b, while L. barbarum is only hardy to 6b.  Hopefully people are breeding hybrids that are tastier for us cold zoners.  My L. chinense plants are surviving here in zone 5 for me, but the berries had that bad pepper taste too.  I'll try drying them and see if they're tolerable.

Just read that Phoenix Tears is a sweet, hardy L. barbarum.