I have started growing goji this past summer and I now have about 30 small plants. This is the first I've heard about the potential for mildew. I wonder it it has something to do with the Portland area. Typically the plants grow in very high altitude with severely cold winters, neither of which Portland offers. Where I am growing it is very similar to the Himilaya mountian region so maybe I wont run into that problem.
I also wanted to say something about the species of goji planted. There is a differece between between tibetian goji and chinese goji with is commonly called the wolfberry. Tibetian goji is not wolfberry.
I've had several brands over the years and the one's Im growing are from
http://gojiberry.com/ I've really not seen much of a difference in the berries from different companies... only in how dry or moist they are but clearly the goji berry company says there is a difference, not only in appearance but in
medicinal quality. Although the wolfberry is quite good for you the Tibetian goji is the preferred berry for Tibetian herbal remedies, and apparrently goji is in many herbal remedies both Tibetian and Chinese.
First, the Tibetan Goji berry and the Chinese Wolfberry are both Lycium berries. They look similar to one another and share the same pinyin name of Gou Qi Zi. Sharing the same pinyin name causes great confusion.
The Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum) has received much popularity in China. It is a widely cultivated export crop and highly regarded in China for its medicinal properties. In addition to being cultivated in the popular region of Ningxia, it is also cultivated on very large commercial farms in the regions of Hebei, Gansu, Qinghai, and Shanxi.
Many varieties of Lycium berries grow all over the world, but the highly revered Tibetan Goji berry grows ONLY in some areas of Tibet and mostly in Mongolian areas. Wolfberries do not grow in any abundance in the traditional Himalayan botanical collection areas where Goji berries grow. Never in the past have Wolfberries been referred to as 'Goji' berries, or visa versa. That is until recently. Now that the Tibetan lycium 'Goji' berry has gained worldwide recognition with strong market demand, the much more cheaply cultivated Chinese Lycium barbarum, or Wolfberry, is being passed off as the Tibetan Goji berry.
Another issue that has lead to confusion is the fact that in China, the Wolfberry is called Gou Qi Zi.
People began to think that the name 'Goji' must be short for the Chinese name Gou Qi Zi; even though these two berries are different in size, taste, name and are grown in two different countries. The name 'Goji' only refers to the Tibetan Lycium variety
of Lycium Chinensis.
http://www.tanaduk.com/research6.html
Now I can not be absolutley positive as to where the truth lies on this issue of quality and type of berry but according to Chinese medicine the Chinese berry and the Tibetian berry have some different effects in the body.. as explained further in the link I provide.....
The Tibetian berry - lycium Chinenisis is smaller, rounder and sweeter.