What is a ginkgo tree?

The ginkgo ( Ginkgo biloba ) is the only living member of the gymnosperm order Ginkgoales. Native to China, it has existed for around 250 million years, earning it the nickname "living fossil". Ginkgo trees are pyramidal, with a columnar trunk reaching 65 to 100 feet (20 to 30 meters). They have fan-shaped leaves that turn golden in the fall. Ginkgos are dioecious, meaning that male and female reproductive structures appear on separate trees. The seeds of female ginkgo trees have a fleshy covering that emits a foul odor similar to rancid butter. Ginkgos have been used in traditional Chinese medicine, and more recently, ginkgo extracts have become popular for their purported memory-enhancing properties. Ginkgos are also cultivated as ornamentals because they are attractive, fungus- and insect-resistant, and can survive cold weather and adverse urban conditions.

Where does the ginkgo tree originally come from?

The ginkgo tree ( Ginkgo biloba ) is native to China and is the only living representative of the order Ginkgoales. It has existed for approximately 250 million years, leading it to be termed a living fossil. Though the ginkgo was once distributed nearly worldwide, its natural range eventually shrank to a small area of China. It has long been planted in Chinese and Japanese temple gardens and is valued as an ornamental tree.

What do leaves on a ginkgo tree look like?

Ginkgo tree leaves are unique and easily identifiable. Their leaves are fan-shaped with dichotomous venation, where the veins branch out from the base and repeatedly fork towards the edges. Most leaves have two lobes divided by a central notch, though the degree of lobing can vary significantly, even on the same tree. The leathery leaves are up to 8 cm (3 inches) long and can sometimes be twice as broad as they are long. In the summer, they have a dull gray-green to yellow-green color, which transforms into a golden yellow in the fall. Ginkgo leaves remain on the tree until late in the season, dropping rapidly. Fossil leaves similar to the Ginkgo have been discovered dating back to the Jurassic Period (199.6 million to 145.5 million years ago).

Why is the ginkgo tree sometimes called a "living fossil"?

The ginkgo tree ( Ginkgo biloba ) is called a " living fossil " because it is the only living representative of the order Ginkgoales, which contained approximately 15 genera that date back to the Permian Period (298.9 million to 251.9 million years ago). Ginkgo's leaves have a similar form and venation to fossil leaves found from the Jurassic Period (199.6 million to 145.5 million years ago). The ginkgo has remained essentially unchanged from earlier geologic times, and its close relatives are usually extinct. Because it was once unclear whether uncultivated groups of ginkgo could be found in the wild, the ginkgo is often termed a living fossil.

How are male and female ginkgo trees different?

Ginkgo trees are dioecious, meaning that male and female reproductive structures appear on separate trees. The pollen-producing structures (microsporangia) are found on male trees, while female trees bear ovules, which, after fertilization, turn into plumlike seeds. Ginkgos are wind-pollinated. The pollen grains from male trees are carried to the female trees. After the sperm fertilizes the egg cell, the resulting seed consists of an embryo, nutritive tissue, and a seed coat with a fleshy outer layer. The fleshy layer emits a foul smell similar to rancid butter when decaying. For this reason, many cities have opted to plant only male ginkgo trees as ornamentals.

How are ginkgo trees used by people today?

Today, people use ginkgo trees for ornamental, medicinal, and culinary purposes. Ginkgo extract is popular for its purported memory-enhancing properties, and scientists are investigating its chemical constituents as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's disease. The roasted "nut" of the ginkgo is a delicacy in some places. Ginkgo trees are also widely cultivated as attractive ornamentals in parks and gardens. Many cities plant male ginkgos as street trees because they don't produce the foul-smelling seeds of the female trees. Several varieties are available for landscape use, including columnar types and others that are favored for their finer growth habit and better fall color.

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Fan-shaped green leaves of a Ginkgo biloba tree branch against a softly blurred light background.

Cross section of two yellow-orange ginkgo biloba fruits with exposed seeds, displayed in front of a green and yellow ginkgo leaf, isolated on a white background.

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Also called:: maidenhair tree

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tree

Also known as: Ginkgo biloba, maidenhair tree

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What is a ginkgo tree?
The ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) is the only living member of the gymnosperm order Ginkgoales. Native to China, it has existed for around 250 million years, earning it the nickname "living fossil".

Ginkgo trees are pyramidal, with a columnar trunk reaching 65 to 100 feet (20 to 30 meters). They have fan-shaped leaves that turn golden in the fall. Ginkgos are dioecious, meaning that male and female reproductive structures appear on separate trees. The seeds of female ginkgo trees have a fleshy covering that emits a foul odor similar to rancid butter.

Ginkgos have been used in traditional Chinese medicine, and more recently, ginkgo extracts have become popular for their purported memory-enhancing properties. Ginkgos are also cultivated as ornamentals because they are attractive, fungus- and insect-resistant, and can survive cold weather and adverse urban conditions.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Where does the ginkgo tree originally come from?
The ginkgo tree (Ginkgo biloba) is native to China and is the only living representative of the order Ginkgoales. It has existed for approximately 250 million years, leading it to be termed a living fossil. Though the ginkgo was once distributed nearly worldwide, its natural range eventually shrank to a small area of China. It has long been planted in Chinese and Japanese temple gardens and is valued as an ornamental tree.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
What do leaves on a ginkgo tree look like?
Ginkgo tree leaves are unique and easily identifiable. Their leaves are fan-shaped with dichotomous venation, where the veins branch out from the base and repeatedly fork towards the edges. Most leaves have two lobes divided by a central notch, though the degree of lobing can vary significantly, even on the same tree.

The leathery leaves are up to 8 cm (3 inches) long and can sometimes be twice as broad as they are long. In the summer, they have a dull gray-green to yellow-green color, which transforms into a golden yellow in the fall. Ginkgo leaves remain on the tree until late in the season, dropping rapidly. Fossil leaves similar to the Ginkgo have been discovered dating back to the Jurassic Period (199.6 million to 145.5 million years ago).
3 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Why is the ginkgo tree sometimes called a "living fossil"?
The ginkgo tree (Ginkgo biloba) is called a "living fossil" because it is the only living representative of the order Ginkgoales, which contained approximately 15 genera that date back to the Permian Period (298.9 million to 251.9 million years ago). Ginkgo's leaves have a similar form and venation to fossil leaves found from the Jurassic Period (199.6 million to 145.5 million years ago). The ginkgo has remained essentially unchanged from earlier geologic times, and its close relatives are usually extinct. Because it was once unclear whether uncultivated groups of ginkgo could be found in the wild, the ginkgo is often termed a living fossil.
5 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
How are male and female ginkgo trees different?
Ginkgo trees are dioecious, meaning that male and female reproductive structures appear on separate trees. The pollen-producing structures (microsporangia) are found on male trees, while female trees bear ovules, which, after fertilization, turn into plumlike seeds.

Ginkgos are wind-pollinated. The pollen grains from male trees are carried to the female trees. After the sperm fertilizes the egg cell, the resulting seed consists of an embryo, nutritive tissue, and a seed coat with a fleshy outer layer. The fleshy layer emits a foul smell similar to rancid butter when decaying. For this reason, many cities have opted to plant only male ginkgo trees as ornamentals.
3 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
How are ginkgo trees used by people today?
Today, people use ginkgo trees for ornamental, medicinal, and culinary purposes. Ginkgo extract is popular for its purported memory-enhancing properties, and scientists are investigating its chemical constituents as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's disease. The roasted "nut" of the ginkgo is a delicacy in some places.

Ginkgo trees are also widely cultivated as attractive ornamentals in parks and gardens. Many cities plant male ginkgos as street trees because they don't produce the foul-smelling seeds of the female trees. Several varieties are available for landscape use, including columnar types and others that are favored for their finer growth habit and better fall color.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

ginkgo, (Ginkgo biloba), deciduous gymnosperm tree, native to China. Ginkgo has been planted since ancient times in Chinese and Japanese temple gardens and is now valued in many parts of the world as a fungus- and insect-resistant ornamental tree with beautiful autumn foliage. It tolerates cold weather and, unlike most gymnosperms, can survive the adverse atmospheric conditions of urban areas. Although widely cultivated, the plant is listed as an endangered species by the IUCN Red List and is at risk of extinction in the wild.

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Ginkgophyta
Class: Ginkgoopsida
Order: Ginkgoales
Family: Ginkgoaceae
Genus: Ginkgo

Ginkgo is the only living representative of the order Ginkgoales, which contained approximately 15 genera that date from the Permian Period (about 298.9 million to 251.9 million years ago). Extinct genera, such as Ginkgoites and Baiera, are known from fossilized leaves that are similar to those of the present-day tree. The ginkgo is often termed a living fossil because it was once unclear whether uncultivated groups of ginkgo could be found in the wild.

Other Living Fossils

coelacanths (genus Latimeria)
Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus)
horseshoe crabs (order Xiphosura)
Osmunda ferns (genus Osmunda)
pelican spiders (family Archaeidae)
segmented spiders (family Liphistiidae)
tuatara (Sphenodon puntatus)
Wollemi pine (Wollemia nobilis)

Physical description

A ginkgo tree is pyramidal in shape, with a columnar, sparingly branched trunk up to 30 meters (100 feet) tall and 2.5 meters (8 feet) in diameter. The fissured bark is grayish, deeply furrowed on older trees, and has a corky texture. The light-colored wood, soft and weak, has little economic value. Fan-shaped ginkgo leaves resemble the leaflets of the maidenhair fern and are borne on short, spurlike but greatly thickened shoots. The leathery leaves are up to 8 cm (3 inches) long and are sometimes twice as broad. Two parallel veins enter each blade from the point of attachment of the long leafstalk and fork repeatedly toward the leaf edges. Most leaves are divided into two lobes by a central notch. Dull gray-green to yellow-green in summer, they turn golden yellow in autumn, remaining on the tree until late in the season, and then fall rapidly.

Spreading oak tree in summer. (green, leaves, deciduous, shade)

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Trees: Giants Holding the Sky

Microsporangia (pollen-forming structures) and female ovules are borne on separate trees. Pollen grains are carried to the female trees by the wind. Megasporangiate (female) trees bear paired ovules, which, when fertilized, develop into yellowish plumlike seeds about 2.5 cm (1 inch) long, consisting of a large inner nutlike portion surrounded by a fleshy outer covering.

Uses

Ginkgo has been much used in traditional Chinese medicine. Toward the end of the 20th century, ginkgo extract became popular in many countries for its purported memory-enhancing properties, and the chemical constituents of the plant are under investigation as a possible treatment for Alzheimer disease.

Several varieties are available for landscape use, including columnar types and others favored for finer growth habit, better fall color, and other desired qualities. The ripened fleshy seed covering has a very disagreeable odor, similar to that of rancid butter, and can be a slipping hazard on paved surfaces, making the female tree less popular for garden planting.

The “nut” can be roasted and is considered a delicacy in some places.

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Physical description

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