Ginko trees and their "odor"

My older brother informed me that Ginko trees have a certain "doggy droppings" odor when they get more mature. Said he didn't know if it was the male or female tree, if they are divided that way. Is there any truth to this or is he just pulling my branch? Thanks.

It's the fruits on the female tree that are stinky. The tree itself doesn't smell, just the fruits. If you're buying one, get a named cultivar that's male and you'll be fine.

I think you would have your tree for so many years before this became any problem worth noticing, the fruit does smell a bit, but the female tree is not as attractive as the mail ones either in shape or foliage colour, so you wont need to worry for many years, but maybe you have a really mature tree already that has started to fruit. hope this helps a bit, good luck. WeeNel.

Ginkgo trees are dioecious, meaning that "female" trees have the pistillate flowers and "male" trees have the staminate flowers. There are recorded individuals that will "revert" a branch or two, meaning part of the tree will start generating flowers different than the rest of the tree which will allow some self-pollination. As stated above, selection of known male clones will ensure mainly no fruiting.

WeeNel is a bit optimistic in suggesting that it may be many years before fruiting is an issue. This is commonly stated, but isn't a hard and fast fact. Additionally, there are no grounds to state that "female" trees are less attractive than "male" trees in form or fall color. Sex of the tree does not determine these characteristics.

I have had the pleasure and peril of planting many Ginkgo biloba in my career, up to and including 75 trees in the 7-10" caliper (17-25 cm) size for a project back in the late 1980s. Selection of these trees was based on form and fall color, and they were magnificent specimens in the nursery that grew them. Two ended up being "female", though none had fruited to that point in their growth.

Named clones such as 'Autumn Gold', 'Golden Globe', and 'Princeton Sentry' ensure known qualities such as form, fall color, and sex. Placement of the tree can provide some sense of security that you will or won't have to walk under the tree if/when it decides to produce the fruit. It is an awful smell -- don't let anyone convince you otherwise.

I can only assume that where you garden has a lot to do with the rate of growth and the maturity time of the trees, mine has been growing for 10 years and even though it is healthy, it is still not what would be considered a problem either in shape, size or colour, we have friends with the female tree and it has been a disappointment, but again, they are in a different soil, temp and light from where I am on the coast in quite an acidic area. but best get advice for planting such a beautiful tree in your area, after all, you have to live with a tree for a good long while. Good luck, hope you can enjoy your tree whichever one you decide on. WeeNel.

I was going for a walk in a neighborhood in Chicago in mid November, when I encountered an unusual aroma. There were small round "nuts on the ground with a thin yellowish substance under the outer coating. I recognized these as ginkgo fruits, and they had clearly come from the towering trees above me. The smell was not altogether dreadful to me though definitely not very lovely, certainly not as bad as dog droppings. I would say it smelled just like baby poop of the kind when they are still drinking only milk, no solids yet. As a matter of fact, it looked just like the baby poop of a very young one, less than 6 months (yellow)!
I have a unique dilemma regarding a ginkgo tree. My parents had a female tree in their yard, and my father brought me a seedling ( in his lap on the airplane) which we planted in my yard. My dad loves trees, no matter their difficult properties, and he neglected to tell me about the unwelcome smell potential should my tree be female. This tree is now 8 years old and 10 feet tall and there is still no sign of its gender. My father passed away about a year ago, and I planted a memorial garden around the tree. I sincerely hope it is not a female tree, as I could not possibly remove it given the emotional connections. I'm not sure when I find out. My dad loved babies, so he probably did not mind the smell. Maybe it brought back nostalgic memories. I'll just have to think of it that way should my tree be a girl.

Even IF your tree is a girl, it will still be a good few years before you get the fruit that SOME find so disgusting, also you need a really hot summer before the flowers will make fruit, the flowers on both trees are really quite hard to find as a) they are so small and b) they are too far away from the eye to notice most of the time unless you know what you are looking for, it is a really large tree before you will ever get fruit. hence the reason they are grown for the wonderful foliage that gives spring colour in the spring AND autumn. good luck. WeeNel.

The Asian folk love the Ginko fruit and consider it a delicacy ...given the reason your tree is growing I would not worry about it too much many of the trees and shrubs can be a bit of a pain for some reason or other for short periods of time ...I love my Ginko.

So, the fruit is edible. From what I'm reading from the info above, I hope it would taste better than it smells. Ha, ha. I am glad, therefore, that the Ginko tree is a slow grower and a late producer of it's fruits.

My ginko has grown about a foot a year I hope that gives you some sort of guide. :)

While the fruit drops and creates a mess for a while, the leaves drop very fast. Video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMBm_6ymdZE

Leaves on the ginkgo along side our town hall were green the second weekend in November. I went the following weekend to take photos of the color change and the leaves were all on the ground. Much easier to find the fruit before this happens! I don't find the smell very offensive and ate quite a few of them. A member here wanted the seeds with the pulp on them and they arrived in not too bad shape second day USPS. She said they reminded her of Parmesean cheese.

They self-sow easily. Along the wall of the town hall (below) are dozens of little ginkgo trees.

How interesting I loved that video ...my Ginko has about 3/4 weeks of butter yellow leaves and is a lovely golden carpet of mulch after the leaves drop ...I wonder wether your friend mean't that they smell like parmesan cheese? you said you tasted them ...I think they roast or cook theirs ...are they sweet? nutty or what would you describe them as ? I have been successful with winter cuttings off mine :)
chrissy

chrissy.....hmmm....they're......different. Not a strong taste. Very juicy. I was in an Asian market and they sell cryovaced ginkgo (no pulp) in the cooler section.

Is your tree a male? No fruit?

Yes, she was referring to the smell.

Here's a bowl full of the seeds with and without the pulp:

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/fp.php?pid=4161778

Look almost as if they are candied, don't they? (those aren't the ones I ate. They had been sitting out on the town hall lawn for a while)

I should mention for those new to the subject that ginkgo fruit. while edible, are problematic. Read up on it before eating. They can make people sick (and its not just the smell).

Mine is a male fastigata (I think that is how you spell it) very nice pyramid shape.I love it ...I just realized our temps may play a part in the growth ...we are a pretty warm climate here about equal to your 10 I think.