Ginkgo biloba
Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- GIN-koh bih-LOW-bah
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
-
Large deciduous tree 50' to 80' in height and 30' to 40' in width; leaves alternate, simple, fan-shaped; seeds (only on female trees) plum-like, yellow-orange, the outer, fleshy pulp foul-smelling when ripe, the inner wall hard, smooth, and cream colored. Grey-brown bark in ridges.
Messy seeds; plant male trees, yellow leaves fall rapidly in fall; drought, heat, air pollution, and moderately salt tolerant; easy to transplant; long-lived. Resistant to damage by deer. Excellent city tree. Popular for bonsai.
Site: Sun; range of soil types except wet soil
An excellent urban tolerant tree for its sculptural shape the quality of light it creates on the street. The streets of New York exemplify the use of the GinkGo as a street tree. Zone 8 and 9 in the Southeast.
Ginkgo biloba is a prehistoric tree, it disappeared from the North American fossil record about 7 million years ago and has since been introduced from a country or countries.
VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Plant Walls and Hedges
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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'Bryson City'
- 'Golden Globe'
- 'Mariken'
Great golden fall color - 'Golden Globe'
- 'Bryson City', 'Golden Globe', 'Mariken'
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
-
'Bryson City'
- 'Golden Globe'
- 'Mariken'
Great golden fall color - 'Golden Globe'
- 'Bryson City', 'Golden Globe', 'Mariken'
- Tags:
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-
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
- Particularly Resistant To (Insects/Diseases/Other Problems):
- This tree is resistant to damage by deer, excellent city tree.
- Edibility:
- The seed, freed of the outer pulp and washed, is boiled or roasted and eaten and also available in Asian food stores
- Dimensions:
- Height: 50 ft. 0 in. - 80 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 30 ft. 0 in. - 40 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Edible
- Poisonous
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Habit/Form:
- Horizontal
- Pyramidal
- Growth Rate:
- Medium
- Maintenance:
- Medium
- Texture:
- Medium
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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, 5b, 5a, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9b, 9a
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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.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Cream/Tan
- Green
- Orange
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Ginkgos are gymnosperms and do 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.
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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:
- 2-3 in. emerald green, fan-shaped, alternate, simple leaf in clusters of three to five; yellow fall color. Dichotomously veined in clusters.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Dark Brown
- Dark Gray
- Surface/Attachment:
- Ridges
-
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Imbricate mounded acute.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Recreational Play Area
- Walkways
- Landscape Theme:
- Children's Garden
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Design Feature:
- 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
