On Bayswater in Burlingame are some beautiful ginkgo trees with spring green leaves fluttering like butterflies in the afternoon breeze.
Looking closely, the leaves form into fans decorated with delicate veins radiating from the stem out to every edge of the leaf. They are clustered in groups of three to eight, all growing out of the same nodule on the branch. The clusters overlap each other creating shapely shadows.
On this particular tree, male pollen cones are arranged like catkins and are growing out of the same places as the leaves. Once pollen is released, it needs to find a female tree to fertilize the seed into the ginkgo nut.
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I looked for a female tree on the block and found none. I discovered that the ripe fleshy cover of the tasty nut has an unpleasant odor, which could explain why I couldn’t find one.
Chinese history has recorded the growth and care of its native ginkgo biloba. It has been planted in Chinese royal and temple gardens for centuries. Some are pruned artistically into sculptural forms called bonsai.
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My fascination with this tree came when I was in elementary school studying dinosaurs. The ginkgo was there with them, perhaps a favorite food for the vegetarians. The hearty ginkgo biloba survived the weather changes, volcanic ash and other environmental challenges to become a living fossil today. Other varieties of ginkgo trees went extinct with the dinosaurs.
It is no surprise that this tree was chosen by Burlingame as a street tree not only for its beauty, but also for its proven fungus- and insect-resistance and ability to thrive in high traffic areas and urban air.
As a side note, ginkgo biloba has been in the news lately. Scientists have been studying the extract as a possible treatment for Alzheimer disease and other symptoms where enhanced memory would be a benefit.
