Gingko trees are geological relics that bring history and beauty to our landscapes. Join gardening expert Logan Hailey as she shares how to grow and care for gingko trees.
Considered living fossils, ginkgo trees are among the last of their kind. These stunning 25 to 80-foot-tall trees have uniquely fan-shaped leaves that turn vibrant golden-yellow in the autumn. As the last surviving members of the ancient Ginkgoacaeae plant family, these tremendous trees are geological relics that make enchanting landscape specimens for fall color.
Although they are native to China, these trees grow well in most parts of the United States, from USDA zones 3 through 9. Ginkgos are known for their memory-enhancing herbal qualities, but the seeds of female trees can also be quite stinky if left on the ground. Fortunately, seedless all-male cultivars are now available to avoid the smelly cleanup.
Let’s dig into everything you need to know about planting and growing this living fossil in your yard!
Native to China, ginkgo trees have been admired for hundreds of thousands of years in gardens, ornamental landscapes, and urban parks. The oldest known ginkgo tree in North America is located in South Philly’s Bartram’s Garden, allegedly planted in the 1700s. But the oldest ginkgo in the world is over 3,000 years old and grows outside a Buddhist temple in Xi’an City, China.
The long-lived trees show no signs of slowing down, and many speculate that they get more vibrant and healthy as they age. In the fall, the ground beneath each tree is shockingly blanketed with golden-yellow leaves that shine through even the foggiest days. If you plant one in your yard, you can enjoy an equally stunning show that will reliably return every year for generations to come.
Ginkgo biloba is among the oldest living tree species. The deciduous tree is the last remaining species of the ancient Ginkgoacaeae family. Sometimes called maidenhair trees, the distinctive fan-shaped leaves turn extraordinarily bright yellow in the fall.
The massive trees grow up to 80 feet tall and can live for thousands of years, earning them the title of “living fossils.” Gingko is notable for its medicinal qualities for the brain and memory. The tree’s extracts have been used as an herbal medicine for many centuries, and modern science has proven the neurological benefits for memory enhancement, as well as prevention of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Intriguingly, this ancient tree is quite tolerant of drought and urban pollution, making it a popular landscaping tree for city streets, parks, and buildings. It is virtually pest-and-disease-free and tolerates cold weather. The trees can be planted as large single-specimen shade trees or at a closer spacing for a privacy hedge. The pyramidal shape and few branches make for a striking focal point, and the fan-shaped leaves turn from pretty green to striking gold every fall.
Gingkos are dioecious, meaning they have separate male and female trees. The male trees are preferred for cultivation because the female trees can be stinky. Female trees produce yellow cherry-like “fruits” that dangle in pairs. The fleshy fruit-like structure is actually a seed that resembles a plum seed or a nut. These nuts are traditionally used in soups and medicines.
Gingko “fruits” are not technically fruits, but rather fleshy seed ovaries. They are notoriously stinky when they fall to the ground. A gorgeous row of ginkgos grew on my college campus and regularly shed their “fruits” on the ground every fall. The orangish-tan fleshy seeds were so pretty, yet they smelled like vomit as they rotted on the concrete. It is a smell you will never forget! Horticulturalists have struggled to properly sex-identify the trees when they’re young, but by propagating with cuttings or using the male-only cultivars that we will discuss below, you can ensure a sleek, stink-free landscape.
The trees naturally grow straight up with a pyramidal structure averaging 40 to 80 feet tall but often exceeding 100 feet at maturity. Dwarf varieties are also available. The bark is fissured and gray with a corky texture. As trees age, the bark becomes more deeply furrowed like an ancient wrinkled wise being. The interior wood is light-colored and soft and was once used for religious furniture. However, it is too soft to serve structural purposes, and nobody wants to cut down a living fossil!
Gingko leaves are fan-shaped with irregular toothing along the widest edge. There is a distinctive notch that splits the leaves into two lobes, hence the name bi-loba, as in “two.” The leaves are cheery lime green and turn dull and grayish in the summer, then yellow and eventually gold in the autumn. They stay on the tree late into the season for long-lasting color, then rapidly fall at the same time, creating a pretty skirt of gold. The leaves are most commonly used in herbal extractions for memory-enhancing supplements and teas.
These tremendous ancient species are native to China and grow throughout the world as ornamental and medicinal plants. Ginkgo biloba trees date back over 270 million years to the Permian Period when Earth’s crustal plates were still in the single continental formation of Pangea. About 70% of terrestrial plant and animal species on Earth went extinct during this era, but the majestic ginkgo survived.
Ginkgo trees are widely cultivated but are listed as highly endangered in the wild. Planting one in your yard can help preserve an ancient species (though clearly, ginkgos don’t need much help from humans to survive through the ages).
An interesting fact about ginkgos is that they are gymnosperms, which means “naked seed” in Latin. These trees are so old that they pre-date flowering plants! Most gymnosperms are coniferous, like redwoods, pines, and firs, but ginkgos are broadleaf gymnosperms.
While their dangling “naked seeds” look similar to fruits, they are technically naked ovules or kernels with a fleshy covering. The trees don’t produce any flowers; instead, the pollen from a male tree reaches the open ovules of a female tree, and they fertilize each other.
While you can propagate ginkgo from seed, it is more common to propagate by cutting so you can ensure you have a male tree that won’t drop any stinky seeds in your yard. Grafting is sometimes used to jumpstart a new tree.