genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of flowering plants in the
nightshade
Solanaceae (), commonly known as the nightshades, is a family of flowering plants in the order Solanales. It contains approximately 2,700 species, several of which are used as agricultural crops, medicinal plants, and ornamental plants. Many me ...
family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
,
Solanaceae
Solanaceae (), commonly known as the nightshades, is a family of flowering plants in the order Solanales. It contains approximately 2,700 species, several of which are used as agricultural crops, medicinal plants, and ornamental plants. Many me ...
. The genus has a
disjunct distribution
In biology, a taxon with a disjunct distribution is one that has two or more groups that are related but considerably separated from each other geographically. The causes are varied and might demonstrate either the expansion or contraction of a s ...
around the globe, with species occurring on most continents in
temperate
In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...
and
subtropical
The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones immediately to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Ge ...
wolfberry
Goji, goji berry, or wolfberry () is the sweet fruit of either '' Lycium barbarum'' or '' Lycium chinense'', two closely related species of boxthorn in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. ''L. barbarum'' and ''L. chinense'' fruits ar ...
, and desert-thorn.
Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
History
Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...
The generic name ''Lycium'' is derived from the Greek word λυκιον (''lykion''), which was applied by
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...
(23-79) and
Pedanius Dioscorides
Pedanius Dioscorides (, ; 40–90 AD), "the father of pharmacognosy", was a Greek physician, pharmacologist, botanist, and author of (in the original , , both meaning "On Medical Material") , a 5-volume Greek encyclopedic pharmacopeia on he ...
(ca. 40–90) to a plant known as dyer's buckthorn. It was probably a '' Rhamnus'' species and was named for
Lycia
Lycia (; Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; , ; ) was a historical region in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean Sea in what is today the provinces of Antalya and Muğ ...
(Λυκία), the ancient southern
Anatolia
Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
n region in which it grew.Huxley, A., ed. (1992). ''New RHS Dictionary of Gardening''. Macmillan . The berry is called ''lycii fructus'' ("lycium fruit") in old
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
pharmacological
Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between ...
texts.
Description
''Lycium'' are
shrub
A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...
s, often thorny, growing 1 to 4 meters tall. The leaves are small, narrow, and fleshy, and are alternately arranged, sometimes in fascicles. Flowers are solitary or borne in clusters. The funnel-shaped or bell-shaped corolla is white, green, or purple in color. The fruit is a two-chambered, usually fleshy and juicy
berry
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples of berries in the cul ...
which can be red, orange, yellow, or black. It may have few seeds or many. Most ''Lycium'' have fleshy, red berries with over 10 seeds, but a few American taxa have hard fruits with two seeds.
While most ''Lycium'' are
monoecious
Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system comparable with gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy, and contras ...
, producing bisexual flowers with functional male and female parts, some species are gynodioecious, with some individuals bearing bisexual flowers and some producing functionally female flowers.
Uses
''Lycium'' has been known to European
herbalists
Herbal medicine (also called herbalism, phytomedicine or phytotherapy) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. Scientific evidence for the effectiveness of many herbal treatments ...
since ancient times, and species were traded from the
Far East
The Far East is the geographical region that encompasses the easternmost portion of the Asian continent, including North Asia, North, East Asia, East and Southeast Asia. South Asia is sometimes also included in the definition of the term. In mod ...
Ariaca
Ariaca () was a region of Western India beyond Barigaza, mentioned in ancient geographical sources, usually associated with the Western Satraps.
According to the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, Ariaca was part of the kingdom of ''Nambanus'', tho ...
and the port of
Barbarikon
Barbarikon () was the name of a sea port near the modern-day city of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, important in the ancient era of the Indian subcontinent in Indian Ocean trade. The port is considered one of the premiere ports regarding the interacti ...
near today's
Karachi
Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
, as mentioned in the ''
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
The ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'' (), also known by its Latin name as the , is a Greco-Roman world, Greco-Roman periplus written in Koine Greek that describes navigation and Roman commerce, trading opportunities from Roman Egyptian ports lik ...
''. In his ''
Naturalis historia
The ''Natural History'' () is a Latin work by Pliny the Elder. The largest single work to have survived from the Roman Empire to the modern day, the ''Natural History'' compiles information gleaned from other ancient authors. Despite the work' ...
'',
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...
describes boxthorn as a medicinal plant, as does
Pedanius Dioscorides
Pedanius Dioscorides (, ; 40–90 AD), "the father of pharmacognosy", was a Greek physician, pharmacologist, botanist, and author of (in the original , , both meaning "On Medical Material") , a 5-volume Greek encyclopedic pharmacopeia on he ...
in his ''P. Dioscoridae pharmacorum simplicium reique medicae''.
In his 1753 publication ''
Species Plantarum
' (Latin for "The Species of Plants") is a book by Carl Linnaeus, originally published in 1753, which lists every species of plant known at the time, classified into genus, genera. It is the first work to consistently apply binomial nomenclature ...
'',
Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
describes three ''Lycium'' species: '' L. afrum'', '' L. barbarum'', and '' L. europaeum''.Hitchcock, C. L. (1932). A monographic study of the genus ''Lycium'' of the Western Hemisphere. ''Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden'' 19(2/3), 179-348 and 350-66. doi:10.2307/2394155 (First page image).
''Lycium'', particularly ''L. barbarum'', have long been used in
traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...
. The leaves and roots of other species of ''Lycium'', such as ''L. europaeum'', when mixed with water, have been used in folk medicine. The fruit of ''L. barbatum'' and ''L. chinense'', known as
goji
Goji, goji berry, or wolfberry () is the sweet fruit of either ''Lycium barbarum'' or ''Lycium chinense'', two closely related species of boxthorn in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. ''L. barbarum'' and ''L. chinense'' fruits are ...
berry, is commonly consumed as a dried fruit. The Chinese tonic ''gou qi zi'' ("wolfberry fruit") is made of the fruit of any of several ''Lycium'' species, and is used as a
dietary supplement
A dietary supplement is a manufactured product intended to supplement a person's diet by taking a pill (pharmacy), pill, capsule (pharmacy), capsule, tablet (pharmacy), tablet, powder, or liquid. A supplement can provide nutrients eithe ...
.
Ecology
''Lycium'' species mostly occur in
arid
Aridity is the condition of geographical regions which make up approximately 43% of total global available land area, characterized by low annual precipitation, increased temperatures, and limited water availability.Perez-Aguilar, L. Y., Plata ...
and semi-arid climates, and a few are known from coastal zones in somewhat saline habitat types.
Invasive species
An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...
include '' L. ferocissimum'', which was introduced to Australia and
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
and has become a dense, thorny pest plant there. It injures livestock, harbors pest mammals and insects, and displaces native species.''Lycium ferocissimum'' (African boxthorn). Invasive Species Compendium. CABI.
Lycium anatolicum
''Lycium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The genus has a disjunct distribution around the globe, with species occurring on most continents in temperate and subtropical regions. South America has the most spec ...
Lycium barbarum
''Lycium barbarum'' is a shrub native to China, with present-day range across Asia and southeast Europe. It is one of two species of boxthorn in the family Solanaceae from which the goji berry or wolfberry is harvested, the other being ''Lycium ...
Walter
Walter may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Walter (name), including a list of people and fictional and mythical characters with the given name or surname
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–19 ...
Lycium chinense
''Lycium chinense'' is one of two species of boxthorn shrub in the family Solanaceae. Along with '' Lycium barbarum'', it produces the goji berry ("wolfberry"). Two varieties are recognized, ''L. chinense'' var. ''chinense'' and ''L. chinense' ...
Lycium ferocissimum
''Lycium ferocissimum'', the African boxthorn or boxthorn, is a shrub in the nightshade family (Solanaceae) indigenous to South Africa.
Distribution
The species is native to the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces in South Africa, where it ...
Lycium pallidum
''Lycium pallidum'' is a species of flowering plant in the nightshade family known by the common names pale wolfberry and pale desert-thorn. It is native to northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. In Mexico it can be found in Sonora, ...
'' Miers – pale desert-thorn
* ''
Lycium parishii
''Lycium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The genus has a disjunct distribution around the globe, with species occurring on most continents in temperate and subtropical regions. South America has the most spec ...
Lycium pumilum
''Lycium pumilum'' is a shrub in the nightshade family (Solanaceae) indigenous to South Africa and Namibia.
Distribution
The species is widespread across the dry western interior parts of South Africa, specifically the Cape Provinces as well as ...
Lycium tenuispinosum
''Lycium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The genus has a disjunct distribution around the globe, with species occurring on most continents in temperate and subtropical regions. South America has the most spec ...
Lycium torreyi
''Lycium torreyi'' is a species of flowering plant in the nightshade family known by the common name Torrey wolfberry. It is native to northern Mexico and the southwestern United States from California to Texas.Matthews, Robin F. 1994''Lycium tor ...