Leaf looks like Jade Butterfly

whaas...sure does look like it!! very distinctive look to the leaves!

'Jade Butterfly' is one of the most distinctive forms of ginkgo.

You should always use it as a specimen plant, and never as a shade tree.

Slow growing with a dwarf vase multi-stem growing habit with butterfly shaped leaves produced in tight clusters.

I am not seeing these characteristics in this tall leggy single leader specimen in question in your link.

One thing for sure it isn't...'Chase Manhattan'. It will be a hard call with the many look alike cultivars available in today's market.

'Chase Manhattan'

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Perhaps Sara will be able to shed more light in determining what you have.

Dave

Growth habit of 'Jade Butterfly'. Does not evolve from a single leader.

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Hmmmm....I see what you mean. So it's not just because it's young that it's just a single leader.

The mystery continues..

I posted a response on the Trees Forum yesterday but now I don't see it, either!

Chase Manhattan has little bitty leaves -way smaller than the species - that are not ruffled, so that right there makes me think that this is not Chase Manhattan.

Also, remember that the size estimate is the size at a certain point (typically 10 years) and you got it when it already had some number of years under its belt.

Ginkgos grow differently depending on what part of the mother/father plant the cutting came from, so growth habit is not always a guide.

I'm running around today/tomorrow so don't have time to compare leaves but Jade Butterfly is certainly a good place to start.

More later...

Sara

Are you sure the tree has been grafted? Can you see the union?
Al

More info: He said it doesn't appear to be grafted. He also said it has been in the pot for a year and you can tell that they used one of its branches to create a leader.

Also, he said it had 2 or 3 small extensios on some of the branches that had regular sized ginkgo leaves on them!

He also said it looks like it has had some damage and scars ...like it was previously injured.

I'll do some research and post later - the only one grown commercially from cuttings with any real production is 'Green Pagoda' by Stanley. It's possible others are out there that are grown from cuttings but the big producers graft. This one doesn't look like the species...could be a seedling with variation...

Jade Butterfly is not always multi-stemmed. I have two single leader plants myself. You can google to see the forms and typically the leaf is the key to positive identification.

But yes JB is typically more dense, well branched and squat for the most part. Only the leaf looks like JB.

It could be somebody grafted it real low....

I don't own a single Ginkgo, but I recently photographed several:

Bernheim - not even close. scratch that.
Mariken - no way
Munchkin - now way

Troll - I would've said definitely nope for the reason being most of its leaves are not dissected directly down the middle. Then I looked at Jade Butterfly next and saw that it too showed leaves mostly not dissected down the middle, either.
Here's 'Troll'

Here's 'Jade Butterfly'

'Troll'

Back to 'Jade Butterfly' as a specimen. This old specimen is a shrub:

'Little Pete' - has more middle dissection... kind of like your photo #1 at the link.

'Little Pete'

'Saratoga' nix. The leaves aren't even remarkably close.

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I realize I'm not much help, but I don't own any ginkgoes.

Dax

It sounds like this tree was treated poorly and so an emaciated JB seems to still be the closest match we have LOL

Dax - awesome photos! Thanks for the thorough investigation. What I definitely know is that I need to get a Ginkgo! Gorgeous trees!

Yes it looked to me the tree could have been grown in a shaded or crowded environment.

Dave

Close up of 'Jade Butterfly' foliage.

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There is a possibility you will never know what Ginkgo you have.

I have one that nobody can identify either even though it has an unusual growing habit along with an interesting leaf structure.

Looking at Harold Greer's Ginkgo leaf photos from my Winter CQ article, I would say that the leaves of the OP's tree are closest to Chase Manhattan, Jehosophat or Spring Grove. Jade Butterfly just doesn't seem to have leaves that are as ruffled.

Ademink - can you take a close up of a leaf or two with a quarter next to them so that we can see the size? If they are truly noticeably smaller, CM might be the right ID. The leaves on your tree are very ruffled. Dave's close ups of JB show very flat, unruffled leaves.

But he spoke the truth when he said that you may never know which Ginkgo you have!

Sara