120 million years ago. Over vast periods of time, the once diverse ginkgo 
lineage dwindled to the single species Ginkgo biloba, now found wild only 
in eastern China, or perhaps persisting from ancient cultivation there. 
The main difficulty in knowing whether old ginkgoes are wild or cul- 
tivated is that their cultivation in China and Japan is older than written 
records. Individual trees can live over 1,000 years. Some in Japan may 
date back almost to the introduction of the species from China by Bud- 
dhist monks in the 6th century. Most old ginkgoes are associated with 
Buddhist shrines and temples and can reach 120 feet in height and 10 feet 
in diameter. Roots called “chi-chi” in Japan descend peglike from the 
lowest branches on such ancient trees to take hold some distance from 
the trunk. 
The ginkgoes at the Garden are relative youngsters. The founder of 
the Garden, Henry Shaw, recorded in 1861 buying a ginkgo 15-18 inches 
tall, which may be one of the large specimens currently growing on the 
grounds. 
Even by Henry Shaw’s time, ginkgoes had been familiar in North 
American landscaping for a century, for good reasons: beauty, novelty, 
biological and historical interest, and tolerance of unfavorable conditions. 
Another desirable characteristic is virtual freedom from pests, which 
ginkgoes may have outlived in evolutionary time. A word of caution: the 
seeds have a foul outer fleshy layer, which causes a rash when handled by 
some people. Thus only male (seedless) ginkgoes should be planted. 
The inner kernel of the ginkgo seed is edible as a roasted nut. In fact, 
the name Ginkgo comes from Chinese yin-kuo for “silver nut”. Biloba refers 
to the often two-lobed leaves. Ginkgoes occasionally are referred to as 
“maidenhair trees.” 
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