Ginkgo biloba, also known as the “Maidenhair Tree”, is thought to have come to the U.S. from Asia in the 1700’s and to California in the 1800’s. Interestingly, fossils of leaves similar to modern-day ginkgo have been found in North America dating back to 30 million years ago, it appears to have been displaced from the continent by the last ice age. Ginkgos are considered living fossils and are the sole member of their own distinct lineage of gymnosperms dating back nearly 300 million years.
