I stuck 3 Ginkgo seeds in the ground last year in Ohio... and they came up in May, and something ate the seedling tops. Then they sent up more shoots, and one of them was eaten again, and that one came up a third time.

I've collected them in the past. I cleaned them and put them in a baggie in the fridge. They germinated by late winter/early spring. I put them in pots and they grew about a foot the first season.

Neither of these really answered my question.Does anyone have any idea?

Ginkgos should germinate within about 4 to 6 weeks of appropriate temperatures. If you planted your ginko seeds in the fall and they didn't come up by mid spring, something went wrong.

If you want to give it another try, collect fresh seeds, clean them very well, perform a float test (those that remain afloat after 4 to 6 hours are very likely bad), store in the frige in a damp (not wet) medium (sterile sand, coir, peat moss, vermiculite, perlite, or even a moistened paper towel) or plant out as you did above. If you store the seed in the frig, check them regularly (at least once a month) for sufficient moisture and to be sure mold isn't forming. If you plant out, be sure to sufficiently protect from varmint damage/predation.

They came up,but not until early August.

That is very unusual. Were they cleaned well? Did you keep the potting medium moist? Or, were they planted in the ground?

I mean as long as they germinated and look healthy you should be fine. I know much of you guys up north didn't have much of a summer so that could be why they didn't germinate til August...not to mention you are in zone 4! Leave them be and see how they do next season. They may just not grow that fast up north since they are close to their northern extent. Good luck!

By my previous post I meant... are you totally sure they did not come up and something happenned to the seedlings in late May/ early June, then they came up again in August? Maybe you didn't see them if you didn't check everyday.

Some plants - I don't claim to be a gingko expert - have germination-inhibiting compounds in the pericarp(the fleshy material surrounding the seed) - if you just planted the gingko fruits without removing the stinky fleshy material surrounding the 'nut', that may account for the delayed germination you experienced. Or not.

I just ordered 5 ginkgo seeds and would like to know if I should cold stratify them in the refrigerator instead of plant them out now, then plant them in the ground in May?

Would that be better and safer?

If you can protect them from predation, I'd go ahead and plant them outside now.

Five seeds sure isn't a big number. I hope you didn't have to pay much for so few seeds!

Do a float test before you plant to ensure the seeds are likely viable. They are relatively easy to germinate and you should have good success, but, if not, contact someone that grows Ginkgos and I'm sure they would be happy to send you plenty of seeds for postage. I am currently out for this year, but another forum participant (Ditas) may have plenty left from a recent large harvest, discussed in another recent thread.

Yeah, I paid a good price for them, but I can find a nice spot right now being the perfect time of the year and get natural stratification, I hope.

Next time I'll have to search the seed exchange forum and probably get better deals.

Thanks for the help.