A ginkgo leaf	A number of ovules on a ginkgo	A ginkgo tree
A cluster of leaves	Possible leaf shapes	A number of ripe seeds

Division Ginkgophyta, the ginkgoes, lived on earth million of years ago. The fossil record indicates that these date back to the Permian Period, expanded greatly during the middle Jurassic, and diversified and truly came to thrive during the Cretaceous Period. In the Paleocene Period, the group was reduced to a single species, whose ancestor survives today, but only due to its early domestication in China. No species survive in the wild.

Primitive gymnosperms, the ginkgoes bear seeds at the end of branches, and the seeds are not protected by cones; however, it is believed that ginkgoes are more closely related to today's conifers than to any other gymnosperm division. The large, fan-shaped leaves of ginkgo plants grow on the ends of shoots on tree branches.

Male plants produce pollen, which contains the sperm. The females produce unprotected ovules in pairs at the end of the shoots. As the ovule develops, however, a ring of flesh at the base of the ovule begins to expand, until the ovule is covered with a "false fruit," which appears to be a berry, but is not.

After being pollinated by the wind, the ovules fall to the ground and begin to decay. The strong presence of butyric acid in the "fruit" causes a rancid smell, and as a result, the females are not often used as decorative trees.

Procedures:
1. Diagram #11 from leaf sheet.
2. Write descriptive paragraph.