A Potted History of Ginkgo
The leaves (and nuts) of ginkgo have been safely used as medicine and food for several thousands of years. The wealth of empirical knowledge about this amazing tree is reassuring regarding its safety and efficacy when used in normal daily doses and should encourage us to grow and use it more frequently.
Notably the oldest living species of the tree, the ginkgo was described by Charles Darwin as a ‘living fossil,’ because it has evolved over 200 million years, from the same period in fact that the first birds appeared and dinosaurs reached their optimum size. Cone-bearing trees were plentiful, and pines and conifers remain more closely related to ginkgo than other deciduous trees. Ginkgo leaves were used to retrieve and strengthen memory abilities as early as 2800 BCE.
The name “ginkgo” comes from the Chinese word yinhsing, which describes the tree’s fruit and means “silver apricot”. The “biloba” part of the name describes the leaves, which frequently have two lobes and a heart-shaped appearance.
Records show that its thorns could pierce and drain an abscess and were boiled in drinks to help reduce swelling.
The tree has a phenomenal record of resistance to insects, pollution, and parasitic invasion. Ginkgo’s resilience is also evidenced by the fact that ginkgo nuts were found alive after the atomic explosion in Hiroshima, Japan, where even damaged trees began to sprout and grow.
Keep taking ginkgo your brain and circulation will thank you.
Link to our Ginkgo Tincture: https://tinyurl.com/32vfs2jn
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