Ginkgo biloba
Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- GIN-koh bih-LOW-bah
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
-
Ginkgo is a long-lived, woody, deciduous tree in the ginkgo family (Ginkgoaceae). It is native to south-central and southeast China and is often called a living fossil because the ginkgo has existed, seemingly unchanged, for hundreds of millions of years. Dinosaurs rested in the shade of these trees! The species epithet is Latin for "two-lobed" and describes the typical leaf morphology of the species.
While it tolerates a variety of soil textures and pH, ginkgo needs a site in full sun and good drainage to thrive. Avoid wet soils. Propagation is by grafting.
It can grow 50 to 80 feet tall and 30 to 40 feet wide, but dwarf and fastigiate cultivars are available. This tree’s pyramidal shape and uniquely fan-shaped leaves are the main attractions, even more so in autumn, when the leaves turn golden yellow. Soon afterward, the ground below the trees is carpeted with golden leaves. Seeds from female trees are messy and have foul-smelling flesh, so planting grafted male trees is often preferable.
The ginkgo tree is tolerant of drought, heat and air pollution and is moderately salt-tolerant, which makes it an excellent choice for urban settings, streetscapes, recreational play areas and walkways. Consider it for an Asian garden, children's garden, winter garden, or drought-tolerant garden. Its sculptural form makes it popular for use in bonsai.
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: May cause contact dermatitis.
VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers," a plant identification course developed in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Plant Walls and Hedges
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
-
'Bryson City'
- 'Golden Globe'
Male tree, rounded shape for good shade, good fall color - 'Mariken'
Up to 3 feet tall, somewhat weeping male tree
Golden fall color, narrow vase shape habit - 'Golden Globe'
- 'Bryson City', 'Golden Globe', 'Mariken'
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
-
'Bryson City'
- 'Golden Globe'
Male tree, rounded shape for good shade, good fall color - 'Mariken'
Up to 3 feet tall, somewhat weeping male tree
Golden fall color, narrow vase shape habit - 'Golden Globe'
- 'Bryson City', 'Golden Globe', 'Mariken'
- Tags:
-
-
Attributes:
- Genus:
- Ginkgo
- Species:
- biloba
- Family:
- Ginkgoaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- China South-Central and China Southeast
- Play Value:
- Sound
- Wildlife Food Source
- Wind Shimmer
- Edibility:
- The seed, freed of the outer pulp and washed, is boiled or roasted and eaten.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 50 ft. 0 in. - 80 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 30 ft. 0 in. - 40 ft. 0 in.
-
-
Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Edible
- Perennial
- Poisonous
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Habit/Form:
- Horizontal
- Pyramidal
- Growth Rate:
- Medium
- Maintenance:
- Medium
- Texture:
- Medium
-
-
Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
- Occasionally Wet
- Available Space To Plant:
- 24-60 feet
- more than 60 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
-
-
Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Cream/Tan
- Gold/Yellow
- Orange
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- As a gymnosperm, Ginkgo does not produce fruit but its seeds (only on female trees) are plumlike, yellow-orange, the outer, fleshy pulp foul-smelling when ripe, the inner wall hard, smooth, and cream colored. When the seeds fall to the ground they can be quite messy. Most of the ornamental ginkgoes in the United States are male.
-
-
Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Cream/Tan
- Green
- Orange
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Ginkgo is a gymnosperm and does not produce flowers; however, they are dioecious with separate male and female trees. Male plants produce small pollen cones with sporophylls. Female plants produce ovules at the end of a stalk. Fertilization occurs via motile sperm, as in cycads, ferns, mosses and algae.
-
-
Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Leathery
- Smooth
- Soft
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Leaves are 2 to 3 inches long, emerald green, fan-shaped, alternate, simple leaf in clusters of three to five; yellow fall color. Dichotomously veined.
-
-
Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Dark Brown
- Dark Gray
- Surface/Attachment:
- Ridges
- Bark Description:
- Grey-brown bark in ridges.
-
-
Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Ginkgo produces long shoots and short shoots. The short shoots, or spurs, are reproductive.
-
-
Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Recreational Play Area
- Walkways
- Landscape Theme:
- Asian Garden
- Children's Garden
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Winter Garden
- Design Feature:
- Shade Tree
- Specimen
- Street Tree
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Drought
- Heat
- Pollution
- Salt
- Urban Conditions
- Problems:
- Contact Dermatitis
- Malodorous
- Messy
- Poisonous to Humans
-
-
Poisonous to Humans:
- Poison Severity:
- Low
- Poison Symptoms:
- TOXIC ONLY IF LARGE QUANTITIES EATEN. SKIN IRRITATION MINOR OR LASTING ONLY FOR A FEW MINUTES. Irritation of the skin following contact with the juice of the seed pulp; irritation of lips, mouth, and throat and stomach pain, nausea, and diarrhea after eating the pulp.
- Poison Toxic Principle:
- An alkyl phenol and ginkgolic acid
- Causes Contact Dermatitis:
- Yes
- Poison Part:
- Seeds
