Golden Oldie

NOT MANY PLANTS CAN CLAIM TO IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY, HELP PREVENT ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND LIVE FOR A MILLENNIUM

- Melissa King

Ginkgo biloba is one of the oldest living trees. Charles Darwin called it a “living fossil” because ginkgo fossils have been found dating back to the lower Jurassic age, when dinosaurs roamed the earth.

Ginkgo biloba is the only species of ginkgo in existence today. Botanically speaking, it’s a unique tree; in fact, it’s so different from other modern trees that it stands alone in its own little category. It’s dioecious, meaning there are separate male and female trees. Female trees produce wrinkled, apricot-looking fruit, which produce a foul smell when they rot, so for this reason male ginkgos are the plant of choice.