| General Description | ‘Beijing Gold’ is a dwarf deciduous tree that is slow growing and upright. It produces unique fan-shaped leaves that begin golden in the spring and change to green with variegation throughout the growing season. It is very adaptable to a variety of growing conditions and is well suited to urban settings. |
| ID Characteristic | Typical of the Ginkgoaceae family, the most obvious identification characteristic is the tree’s fan-shaped leaves which are paper thin with fine parallel venation. Next are the branches, which feature enlarged nodes built from mounds of woody tissue where, every year, the buds produce leaves. When the leaves abscise in autumn, these nodes are especially visible. Another key characteristic is its unique leaf colouring. This cultivar is one of few trees to leaf out with golden colouring in spring, then convert to striped golden leaves during summer, and back to gold in the autumn. |
| Shape | Sometimes referred to as a large shrub, ‘Beijing Gold’ is a dwarf tree. It supports coarse outward lateral branching, giving the leaves a pleasant, layered appearance. The branches are spaced apart, with little crossing limbs and few small twigs. It grows into an upright narrow form, with a rounded crown as it takes on a more shrub-like form in maturity. |
| Landscape | Due to this cultivar’s particular foliage colouring, it can easily be incorporated into landscapes as a specimen, accent, or focal point. It grows well in small gardens and beside buildings due to its upright shape. ‘Beijing Gold’ is pollution tolerant making it ideal for urban settings. It can also be used for roadside plantings and screening. Not only is it planted for ornamental purposes, but for its cultural significance and medicinal traits. |
| Propagation | Landscape Ginkgo trees are usually intentionally male plants to avoid production of malodorous seeds. A very common way to propagate male cultivars is through grafting onto seedling rootstocks grown via seeds. Easy grafting methods for Ginkgo include whip grafting, where corresponding cuts in scion and rootstock interlock, and cleft grafting, where the rootstock is much larger than the scion being attached.
Choosing the correct genotypes early in plant development and performing clonal propagation using in vitro techniques are two ways of ensuring male plant production. One method of in vitro propagation, or micropropagation, involves taking developed nodal and apical meristems from a mature Ginkgo tree and placing them in a growing medium containing auxins and endosperm extract from mature seeds of the same species. This results in root development and production.
Seed propagation proves to be difficult due to the plant’s dioecious nature and extended juvenile stages. These factors result in low seed germination rates. Because of Gingko’s slow growth rate and poor seed germination, cuttings are also taken in the summer and rooted using auxins such as indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) or alpha-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA).
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| Cultivation | This tree prefers well-drained soils but can adapt to almost any condition except waterlogged soils or extreme drought. It can grow in soil pH that is acidic, neutral, or alkaline. It can easily tolerate all sand, clay, and chalky soils but grows best in rich loam. It requires full sun to partial shade, as the golden leaves can be susceptible to sun scorching. It prefers protected areas, surrounded by other plants or beside buildings. |
| Pests | No notable pests or diseases. |
| Notable Specimens | The Dawes Arboretum in Newark Ohio, United States of America, hosts a large ‘Beijing Gold’ specimen that has reached its natural size and form. |
| Habitat | Horticultural origin. |
| Bark/Stem Description | This tree has medium textured, light grey bark that is broken up by small, vertical, beige furrows. Its young wood is similar in colour but smoother to the touch with less grooves present. On older branches, the thin bark exfoliates around the large woody nodes holding the leaves. |
| Flower/Leaf Bud Description | The buds on ‘Beijing Gold’ are small and very rounded. They look partly included in the stem, as they are growing exactly where other leaf buds have arisen in past years. Because of this, new buds are found growing from the top of the tree’s elongated nodes. Wide, squat bud scales cover the bud. The bud scales are chestnut brown with tips that are slightly lighter in colour. The buds are oppositely arranged and spaced very far apart on the branches. Groups of leaves grow in a ring formation around next year’s bud, their petioles attached just underneath the bud. |
| Leaf Description | The leaves of this tree are uniquely fan-shaped and flat. On average, they are 4-5 cm long and 8-9 cm wide. Their petiole is thin and approximately 4-5 cm long. The leaves are smooth and matte with a papery texture. Small ridges arise on the leaf underside due to the parallel venation throughout the lamina. They have an irregularly notched margin and a deep groove in the middle, forming two lobes, hence the name Ginkgo biloba. Their leaf colour changes throughout the season; they begin golden yellow, and as the summer progresses, chlorophyll pushes green into the leaf so that by the end of summer they have gone completely green. New growth in the summer, however, has golden/white variegated stripes. The leaves then become golden again in autumn. The leaves stay virtually unmarked by any pests or diseases. They often grow in groups of 3-5 and are densely arranged on branches. In autumn, the leaves quickly abscise around the same time as each other, forming a golden mat under the tree. |
| Flower Description | ‘Beijing Gold’ is a spring flowering tree. Because it is a bred male cultivar, it produces staminate flowers or “cones” that are approximately 2.5 cm long. Flower appearance can be compared to that of a catkin. They are light green in colour. Several cones will grow out from around the bud in a circle. They surround clusters of new upright leaves growing out of the bud. Because their flowers lack vibrant colour, it can be assumed that pollination would be wind-driven instead of insect reliant. |
| Fruit Description | This cultivar was specifically bred to be a male plant to avoid the foul-smelling fruit female Ginkgo trees produce. |
| Colour Description | The leaf colour morphs throughout the growing seasons; opening golden in spring, darkening to green with gold/white striped variegation during summer months then to gold again in autumn. The stem and branches are covered in light grey bark. On older branches, furrows in the bark reveal beige underneath the outside layer of grey. Its buds are chestnut brown and its flowers in spring are light lime green. |
| Texture Description | ‘Beijing Gold’ has coarse scaffold branching with little to no fine lateral branches, even at branch tips. It has thick nodes because buds grow from same spot every year, adding to the coarse appearance of the tree. The bark texture does not vary much between new and old growth and stays unchanged in winter months. The leaves are finely textured and thin. |