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Ginkgo Biloba

Common names: Maidenhair Tree 

Irish name: N/A 

Latin name: Ginkgo Biloba 

Family: Ginkgoaceae 

Origin: Non-Native 

Tree type: Deciduous Conifer 

How it Looks

Shape, Bark and Twigs 

The Ginkgo Biloba tree  is dome-shaped when young, becoming more irregular as it grows older and its branches spread out. It can take 20 years to mature and flower, and can grow to a height of between 15-40m. The bark is light grey in colour with irregular ridges. It has two types of twigs: the first, which manifest as short, stout spurs, that lengthen slowly and eventually develop leaves at the tip, and the second, which appear as long shoots with alternating leaves. 

Buds   

The buds are brown, conical, arranged alternately and are visibly large in winter. The lateral buds develop on the spur shoot. 

Leaves  

The leaves are fan-shaped, often with a deep notch which creates two very distinctive lobes, hence the name Biloba. They grow to approx. 12 cm in width and 5-10 cm in length. It is a simple leaf type, with the leaf blade attached to a stem which ends at a bud. The leaves are a rich green colour with diverging veins that turn bright yellow in the Autumn. 

Flowers  

Ginkgo biloba is dioecious, meaning individual plants are either male or female. The male trees produce small, yellowish catkins, while female trees produce ovulate cones. Both male and female catkins emerge simultaneously during the spring season on the weeping willow tree.

Fruits  

The female trees produce round, fleshy seeds that fall in the Autumn, emitting an unpleasant smell as they decay. 

Where to find it

Ginkgo biloba is native to eastern China and some horticulturalists maintain that wild examples of the tree can still be found the mountains between the Anwhei and Chekiang provinces. Beyond this area, it is found only as a cultivated tree. Ginkgo is sometimes mistakenly believed to be native to Japan. However, it was only introduced to Japan from China around a thousand years ago. It is often referred to as a ‘living fossil’ as Ginkgo fossils due to the discovery of Ginkgo fossils which indicate that the makeup of the tree has remained unchanged for 200 million years.   

Ginkgo grows best in full sunlight with moist soil, but has adapted to most climates and soils, hence why it is such a popular street tree throughout the world. 

Cultural Importance

History | Myth | Arts and Literature  

 

History  

Ginkgo Biloba first appears in written Chinese records around 1000 CE (approximately a thousand years ago) and is referred to as a ‘nut tree’. It is likely that Ginkgo nut-like seeds were used as a food source for thousands of years by the early inhabitants of what is now modern-day China. The early written records indicate that Ginkgo was also first cultivated around 1000 CE. Later Chinese texts suggest that it was grown for its ‘nuts’ during the Medieval period, and variously referred to by different names, such as ‘silver apricot’, ‘white fruit, ‘white eye’, the ‘grandfather–grandchild tree’ and ‘duck foot’. It was around this time that Ginkgo was introduced to Japan and Korea. This is supported by the fact that some of the same names for the tree were adopted by these cultures. 

Traditionally, different parts of the Ginkgo were used in China for medicinal purposes. Medical texts from the Qing dynasty (1644–1911 CE) demonstrate that Ginkgo was used to treat respiratory, digestive and urinary issues, amongst other diseases, and to clear poison. Other sources indicate that it was used to cure pox and dog bites. 

In addition to these practical uses, Ginkgo was, and continues to be, considered a sacred tree in China, Japan and Korea as part of different spiritual traditions, including Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and Shintoism. In this regard, Ginkgo trees are frequently found on the grounds of temples and shrines. Likewise, religious objects are often carved from Ginkgo wood, and in some cases, people decorate veteran Ginkgo trees with ribbons and inscriptions, infusing them with their hopes and prayers. 

The Ginkgo is particularly significant for Japanese people. The Ginkgo is such a cultural icon in Japan that it features on over 100 Japanese family crests and in the logos of many Japanese towns and cities including Tokyo. Even the traditional top-knot hairstyle that men wore from the 17th century onwards was referred to as icho or ginkgo as it resembles the shape of a Ginkgo leaf. For the same reason, the Icho-mage traditional hairstyle worn in the past by Japanese women is called the ginkgo-chignon. 

Ginkgo was also one of the few plant species to survive the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 during the Second World War. As such, it has become a strong symbol of hope, resilience and peace. A beautiful example of one of these survivor trees still stands on the grounds of Myojo-in Buddhist Temple in the Higashi Ward of Hiroshima. The tree is thought to be over 150 years old and even survived damage from a typhoon in 2021. Many people come to visit and touch the tree in the hope that they will derive strength and resilience from it.  

In 2021, in partnership with Green Legacy Hiroshima, UCC’s Tree Explorer’s project cultivated seeds taken from survivor Ginkgo trees in Hiroshima. These trees will ultimately be planted in the UCC Arboretum. Describing the aims and value of this collaboration, the Head of Plant Science at UCC, Dr Barbara Doyle Prestwich highlighted that the arrival of the seeds at UCC ‘...will be a way of engaging students and our communities with the importance of plants, not just from a scientific perspective but also as a means of sharing history and a message of peace and cooperation with global partners’. 

The Ginkgo was first officially encountered in Japan by Europeans in the 17th century, when the Dutch physician and botanist Engelbert Kaempfer collected it. It was subsequently introduced to European gardens by the mid 18th century, where it became a popular ornamental tree. Ginkgo trees can be found in arboreta and gardens throughout Ireland, including those at UCC and the champion Ginkgo on the grounds of the University of Galway. 

 

Myth, Legend and Folklore  

As the Ginkgo can live for over 1000 years, it has been associated in different Asian cultures with the qualities of longevity, health and endurance. However, it has also been thought to represent peace, hope, love and duality. 

 

Arts and Literature  

Due to its distinctive appearance and associated symbolism, Ginkgo has inspired poetry and art in both Asia and Europe for centuries. In Japan, Ginkgo leaf patterns were commonly used to decorate furniture, ceramics, metalwork, kimonos and other textiles. In the early twentieth century, with the advent of the arts and crafts movement, images of Ginkgo leaves featured frequently in Art Nouveau design on ceramics, metalwork and architecture. The Art Nouveau façade of Prague’s Hotel Central is a prime example of the latter use. Interestingly, the botanist Peter Crane suggests that, in this context, Ginkgo’s ‘...elegance and clean curves connect easily to an aesthetic that began as a reaction against the machine’ (Crane 2013, quoted in Kennedy 2018). 

On account of its association with peace, longevity and love, Ginkgo featured historically in Asian poetry. For similar reasons, it was also employed by European poets. The best-known example is perhaps Willhelm Von Goethe’s ‘Ginkgo Poem’, in which he compares himself and his partner, Marienne Von Willemer, to the two lobes of a Ginkgo leaf; two people as one.  

Value to Wildlife

Ginkgo Biloba is not known to attract wildlife. However, it has been suggested that squirrels and some birds do consume the nuts of the tree.

Threats

Although Ginkgo is an extremely adaptable and resilient tree, resistant to fire, fungi and pests, it is considered an endangered tree on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list as it is an evolutionary distinct species. In addition, as one of a small group of living gymnosperms, it is considered one of the most threatened organisms on the planet. 

Uses

Ginkgo has a range of practical and medicinal uses. The seeds are frequently used in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean cuisine. They are also a very important ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of respiratory, urinary, and mental health issues. However, in Western medicine, the leaves are the most valued part of the tree in the improvement of blood circulation and brain function. 

The wood of the Ginkgo is also valued for making furniture, kitchen utensils such as chopping boards, bowls and trays, wooden containers for brewing sake, game boards and pieces, and shrines and religous objects.  

Due to its ability to adapt to a range of soil and weather conditions, Ginkgo is also a popular urban street tree throughout the world. 

References

Irish Tree Explorers Network

Líonra Taiscéalaí Crainn na hÉireann

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