And a Great big WELCOME BACK to you. Great to see you posting. I have a vitex, but I'm not sure exactly which one it is. Here it only gets a about 3-4' tall and pretty well dies back each winter. I'm sure there are some seeds hanging on it yet if you'd like them. Also, I have a club moss, though no seeds. I'm not sure of the name, but if you might be interested in a little plant trade later, I will try to get it identified and attempt to transplant some. It is so pretty in the woods year round here where there is little else green except for the ceders and the invasive honeysuckle. Let me know if you are interested in the Vitex. if so, I'll harvest some. Sue...so glad to see you back

I grew about 50 Lycium plants 2 years ago from seed. I soaked the berries and germinated them in damp paper towel. The biggest ones are now about 3 feet tall and flowered for the first time this spring. From what I have heard about goji they like well-drained mineral rich soil and may 'drown' easily. Many of my seedlings survived unprotected outside in pots over the winter, (-25 f) proving them to be very cold tolerant... and also tolerate of the extreme hot and dry summer conditions here with minimal irrigation. I have collected about 5 other 'varieties' of berries from various sources and have them growing in the nursery this spring. I am curious about schisandra and its growing requirements as I bought some seeds this spring but have not started to grow them yet. I'm also trying a plant called yellow-horn which is supposed to be quite drought and heat tolerant and bears edible nuts. -Aaron

I will second the Akebia vines. In zone 8 they stay evergreen, I don't know about zone 6, and after several years one of mine finally fruited. There is a photo of the fruit in this website, you would have to look for the vines, you might find info on other vines that would be interesting too: http://www.paghat.com/ The fruits look like some alien lifeform, a 3-8" pod with a rubbery feel and delicate lavender coloring, that splits open to reveal a strange column of gelatinous stuff with black seeds embedded. I liked the taste, it was mild but tropical. I thought it more edible than passionfruit, which is more something you use to flavor drinks. You could also look into the medicinal properties of the various vines. Passiflora leaves, honeysuckle flowers (anti-bacterial), Schisandra berries, etc.

Not viney at all. Self-fertile hardy kiwi would be my choice.