How to grow ginkgo yourself

With this article we would like to help you grow a ginkgo tree from a seed and take care of.

For the lucky owners of Ginkso seeds.

If you decided to harvest seeds yourself – the best time to do it is from November to December. The seeds look like small apricots with a kernel inside. Make sure you have gloves on to protect your hands from the smell when you harvest it and peel out the meat. After peeling wash the seeds in cold water, dry it and store in a fridge. You might check them occasionally for the fungus. If found, you should wash it out, dry the seeds and put them back in the fridge.

In the beginning of February, you should moisten the seeds in water for 1 or 2 days. Optionally you could rinse it with anti-fungus solution. Then you should put the seeds into a small container with peat and sand or humid tissue. Leave the seeds in the fridge and moist it when needed. Don’t forget to check for fungus.

What to do with chitted seeds?

In 1-1.5 months, the seeds are ready to be planted in the ground. Wash it in manganese solution and plant it in 1l plastic container with seal leakage. Put 2-4 cm of drainage rocks at the bottom and light-textured mineral soil over it. Plant the seed not more than 2cm down in the ground. Water it as usual – the soil should be moderately humid.

If you have put several seeds in one container – in 20 days you should separate it not to injure the roots.

If you have a ginkgo seedling

The young plant needs extra light – you should put it on the window. Water it regularly but don’t overdo. In approximately 3 months the stem will get woody so you can plant it outside or plant it in a bigger pot and leave indoors for one more year.

If you decided to plant out the 5-6 month seedling

Few days before planting you should regularly water the chosen spot for the soil to be moist. The spot needs to be partially shadowed, protected from wind and having grass and other plants growing. Dig out the hole in the ground of the exact height as container is. The soil level for the root neck should remain unchanged after planting out. Water the plant, plant it out and firm the ground around it. Water it again and mulch it with grass to keep the moistness.

Shadow the tree with branches, carton or other plants.

Water the plant daily for the first week (especially if there’s no rain).

If you decided to leave ginkgo inside

Ginkgo sheds leaves in autumn. If you see the leaves become yellow – you have to water it less and put it on the glassed-in balcony with temperature not lower than 5+C. The crown bud should be bulgy and vegete. Sometimes ginkgo trees don’t shed leaves in the apartments which is also fine.

The tree decides itself when to hibernate. When the crown bud becomes green and swollen – it means that the tree has woken up. The leaves grow very fast. If you decided to plant the tree out, you should do it before the leaves shoot. Make sure the freezing weather is gone. The rules to plant a 1-year-old tree is similar to a 5-6 month old tree (see above).

Taking care of ginkgo in the open land in winter.

When night temperature becomes below 0 C you should water the plants with 4-5 buckets per each tree. Mulch the pan with grass, bark or just soil. Shelter each tree with spruce boughs. Don’t use plastic or spunbonds – the tree will die under it. When the night temperature becomes above -5 C you should uncover the top of the tree for the sun.

We wish you luck in growing the most ancient trees in the world. If you have any questions, please contact us. Please leave your feedback and send us photos of your planting experience. Together we can repopulate our Earth with these amazing trees.