Phoenix Tears is much sweeter than seedling goji, which we have grown and have found quite bitter when the seedling Goji are eaten fresh. Phoenix Tears tends to sweeten much better on the plant, thereby making a much better dried goji. Some of the books and other nurseries online repeatedly consider this a zone 3, whereas others say Phoenix Tears is zone 5. We think that it does well in zone 4, but we don’t have experience with it in colder areas and as such, find the discrepancy a little unfounded (especially when places listing it as zone 5 say it is only hardy to -10 to -15F, which would put it closer to a zone 5-6. As such, hardy to zone 4.

These shrubs are had been container grown during the summer of 2024 and therefore have lots of fine root hairs.