Lycium sp.
Box-thorn, wolfberry, Wolfberry
(c) Danny S., some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · licence
Family: Solanaceae · Type: Shrub · Variable; species dependent
Lycium sp. (Box-thorn) is a non-native California shrub in the Solanaceae family.
How to tell it apart
vs Prunus: Lycium has small tubular nightshade flowers; Prunus has 5-petaled rose-family flowers with many stamens.; vs Salvia: Lycium has thorny branches; Salvia has square stems and 2-lipped mint-family flowers without thorns.; vs Ceanothus: Lycium has thorns and tubular flowers; Ceanothus has tiny clustered flowers and no thorns.; vs Tetradymia: Lycium has tubular nightshade flowers; Tetradymia has yellow daisy-like composite flowers.; vs Atriplex: Lycium has tubular flowers and thorns; Atriplex has tiny wind-pollinated flowers without petals.
Frequently asked questions
Is Lycium sp. native to California?
No. Lycium sp. is not native to California (recorded as variable; species dependent).
What plant family does Lycium sp. belong to?
Lycium sp. is in the Solanaceae family, genus Lycium.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Lycium torreyi — Torrey's wolfberry
- Lycium andersonii — Anderson's wolfberry
- Lycium barbarum — Matrimony vine
- Lycium brevipes — Baja desert-thorn
- Lycium californicum — California box-thorn
- Lycium chinense — Chinese wolfberry
- Nicandra physalodes — Apple of peru
- Nicandra sp.
- Nicotiana acuminata var. multiflora — Manyflower tobacco
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-04-14
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.