Meet the Ginkgo
Ginkgo | Ginkgo biloba
How do you know it’s me?:
I am a medium-large deciduous tree.
I have unique, fan-shaped leaves, sometimes two-lobed (hence “biloba” - with a single cleft in the leaf center).
My leaves sprout in clusters of 3-5 from “spurs,” or large buds.
I take on a more conical form while young, spreading more laterally with age .
My bark is grey-brown with ridge-like patterns. It can be smoother when young.
How big do I grow?: 30’ - 80’ height and 25’ - 40’ spread.
Sun-seeker or shade-lover: Full sun.
Where I prefer to put my roots: I am adaptable to a wide variety of soil conditions, including alkaline and acidic soils, salt, and urban conditions. My ideal root environment is medium moisture, sandy, well-drained soils.
Hardiness: Zone 3-8
Original home: My origins can be traced back to Southern China.
Colors: Vibrant yellow fall color.
When I bloom: I have inconspicuous green flowers in spring, and male plants have pollen-producing catkins.
Wildlife friends: Other than providing habitat for small mammals and birds, I do not provide much pollinator or wildlife value.
Flora Fun Facts: I can live to be over a thousand years old.
More Info: Also known as the Maidenhair Tree, Ginkgo biloba is easily-identified, and found all over the world. These slow-growing, stately trees are admired for their bright yellow fall color and are widely used in urban settings in the US due to their tolerance of a range of soil conditions.
One of the oldest living tree species in the world - the last living species of the ancient order Ginkgoales.
Ginkgo trees inhabited the earth over 200 million years ago, before the dinosaurs, and have long been a symbol of hope, peace, and longevity.
One of the oldest current specimens is located at a Buddhist temple in the Zhongnan Mountains of China, and is estimated to be 1,400 years old.
Most trees will drop nearly all their leaves soon after the first freeze, unlike the gradual shedding of many other deciduous trees. Fall color can be disrupted by early cold snaps.
Ginkgos are dioecious, with separate male and female trees. Female trees are generally avoided in the horticultural trade due to the rancid smell of their fallen fruit. But this member of the Ginkgoaceae family can be tricky - these trees can change gender (from male to female) throughout their lifespan and express more than one gender on a single tree. This phenomenon is still a topic of research.
Despite the rotten smell they can produce, female ginkgos are cultivated for their fruit in parts of China. The nuts within the fruit are edible and a source of antioxidants. These nuts should be cooked, and not eaten raw.
The leaves of the tree are primarily what is used to produce the widely available Ginkgo biloba supplement. With a long history of use, this supplement is thought to support the circulatory system and brain function. Some studies have shown that it could also be a useful treatment for depression, anxiety, and memory loss.
