The Trees at the Promenade Museum

The Ginkgo Tree / The Maidenhair Tree

Ginkgo biloba, commonly known as ginkgo or gingko also known as the maidenhair tree.

This is a pan-chronological tree, perhaps one of the oldest on the planet, since has been known for over 250 million years. Originally from China, it is no longer found in the wild but only cultivated and naturalised.

The two oldest in France are in Montpellier and in the Jardin des plants in Paris, dating from the 18th century.

The particularity of Ginkgos, which are more primitive than everygreen conifers, is that they do not produce seeds - the fertilised ovule must germinate quickly or die. Having no seeds, it's not possible to store seeds which wait for favourable conditions to germinate.

Ginkgo biloba L.

Maidenhair Tree