PlantFiles: Maidenhair Tree
Ginkgo biloba

Ginkgo has long been grown as a sacred tree in China and Japan and is often referred to as a "living fossel" - a single tree can live as long as 1000 years and the trees alive today are almost identical to those in fossil records predating the evolution of mammals!

We use extracts from the leaves of this beautiful tree to make organic skin care. Ginkgo leaves contain flavonoids and terpenoids - all potent antioxidants. For this reason the extracts are used in skin care as a free radical neutralizer (anti-aging treatment).

About 10 years ago, we planted a ginkgo here in SW Louisiana, not knowing a thing about it except that it's pretty. Since then we've had drought, freeze, rain and hurricane. It's been almost totally ignored, with occasional cow manure compost tossed around it. The hummingbirds, bluebirds and warblers like the branches and the woodpeckers have rows and rows of holes poked around the trunk. When we first got it, it was almost burned down by a nearby fire and another tree fell on it. I'd definitely call it a hardy tree that's easy to grow! It's about 12 - 15 feet tall, in spite of us.

I have a neighbor with two massive , very old ginkgo trees. They are gorgeous BUT!!!--they are female ginkgo trees and produce the most terrible fruit!!! The odor is horrible. Please be sure you plant a male tree to avoid the terrible smell of the ginkgo fruit.

These trees have the most beautiful golden foliage in the Autumn. They hold their leaves longer than a lot of trees, so they are easy to spot going down the road.

Most have a nice regular shape with alternating branches that looks well in a landscape. The leaves are small, and do not make much of a mess when dropped.

I live in OH, a friend lives in WV, went there of a weekend, and she sent me home with a 6 foot tall tree, we dug it right before we left, it came home in car, not in any water or anything, planted next day some 16 hours later! It was just fine, a very very hardy tree!!! It has survived my Ohio winters and is just a beautiful specimen tree!.

The Ginkgo tree is one of the toughest plants around. In fact several trees survived the Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in WW 2. All the trees were within about a mile and some were about a half mile from the blast and survived!

Ginkgo is a popular street tree here as it seems to withstand fairly harsh environments, is relatively clean (male specimens - the females produce an abundance of smelly fruit) and provides dependable fall foliage in bright yellow.

I have had three efforts at raising Ginkgo's from seed obtained from Chiltern's Seeds. This year I was successful with 100% germination of 10 large seeds.

Gingkoes can generally be grown throughout the US, but here is some useful information for anyone wanting to plant one in a hot climate (such as Texas). A Gingko tree can scorch badly in full sun, especially if it is a young specimen. You are better off planting this tree in a spot with protection from the late afternoon sun. In fact, it makes a great understory tree and we have found that a Gingko will flourish in as little as four hours of daily sunlight. As the tree matures, its own leaves will protect its somewhat tender bark and allow it to grow well in a full sun location. It is also considered to be extremely slow growing. We have found that with 2-3 applications of moderate-rate nitrogen fertilizer per year, a Ginkgo can grow at a nice pace - comparable to a Redbud or Mexican Plum. Gingkoes are truly a unique tree and well worth the effort.

Internationally famous remnant of the dinosaur age, it forms a large tree in 100 years. A Chinese specimen is thought to be 4000 years old. Sexes are on separate trees(dioecious) and females produce fruit after about 20 years. The smelly fruit contains urushiol and must be separated from the large seed while wearing rubber gloves to avoid the 'poison-ivy' rash.