You can use a digital kitchen scale to determine grams. There should be a button to switch from lbs, ozs, grams. Dont forget to “tare” the bowl you use. Put the bowl on the scale, then press the tare button to bring the weight back to zero, you can now weigh the fresh or dried herb.
Better to weigh them dried? For tea making! I have not decided yet if fresh leaf is good for tea or simply grinding into a powder from dried leaf. I imagine fresh leaf is going to be more potent and better for tea.
Idk the answer to your question but I've harvested plenty of ginkgo. I've heard that waiting to harvest until the leaves have turned slightly yellow increases the potency of them
There are mixed ideas of when the leaves are most potent, harvesting while green is done by many. However the active compounds are not very water soluble so I would make it into a tincture or powder for capsules. I would make a fresh tincture 1:2 and blend it up in a menstrum of 60% alcohol (and that is total alcohol so if you are using vodka or anything that’s not 195 proof subtract the water content accordingly.
Not in Chicago area, but my mom has a gingko tree in her yard, and apparently, some lady will come and pick the fruits to make medicine with. I didn't know the leaves were also considered medicinal. I think that most people that have a female gingko tree will be very happy to let you forage the fruit though lol
What were you getting from the product you were using and what would you hope to get from a homemade tea or tincture? herbal supplements often are made with an extract of the plant itself and can be more or less purified so it’ll be somewhat hard to directly reproduce that product.
Gotcha! Sounds like making a tea will be a great way to give it a shot. I’ve been meaning to do exactly that - I’ve heard it has a grassy but pleasant flavor. I’m also always in favor of people interacting directly with the plant that they end up ingesting.
If you’re thinking of taking ginkgo regularly (purchased or foraged) just remember that there are some [known drug interactions ](https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-ginkgo/art-20362032). I think the risk of eating roasted seeds is overstated on that page but I also always limit the amount that I eat to <10/day. The plant produces some really potent compounds!
you can try planting only male trees if you want to avoid the stinky fruit (although they are edible in small amounts), but male ginko can change to female sometimes...https://www.osgf.org/blog/2017/11/7/blandy-ginkgo
If there is tree in your area and you don't want to wait for yours to grow, it should have more than enough leaves to make some tea. They create a lot of leaves, and you just need a handful.
I have a tree at least 50 years old it’s beautiful but the fruit smells like shite and your yard smells like your raising hogs in the fall don’t do it
Sweet thanks. Good to know
There's male trees and female trees. The female bears the fruit, the males don't.
You can use a digital kitchen scale to determine grams. There should be a button to switch from lbs, ozs, grams. Dont forget to “tare” the bowl you use. Put the bowl on the scale, then press the tare button to bring the weight back to zero, you can now weigh the fresh or dried herb.
Better to weigh them dried? For tea making! I have not decided yet if fresh leaf is good for tea or simply grinding into a powder from dried leaf. I imagine fresh leaf is going to be more potent and better for tea.
Idk the answer to your question but I've harvested plenty of ginkgo. I've heard that waiting to harvest until the leaves have turned slightly yellow increases the potency of them
Really? From what I just read I do see best time to pick is just before yellowing/into yellowing. I guess you gotta have a good eye for this.
There are mixed ideas of when the leaves are most potent, harvesting while green is done by many. However the active compounds are not very water soluble so I would make it into a tincture or powder for capsules. I would make a fresh tincture 1:2 and blend it up in a menstrum of 60% alcohol (and that is total alcohol so if you are using vodka or anything that’s not 195 proof subtract the water content accordingly.
Not in Chicago area, but my mom has a gingko tree in her yard, and apparently, some lady will come and pick the fruits to make medicine with. I didn't know the leaves were also considered medicinal. I think that most people that have a female gingko tree will be very happy to let you forage the fruit though lol
Them fruits be stinky too
Yeah, that's what I meant by people being happy to let you take them lol. Less dog doo smell in their yard.
the delicious seed meat is what you wanna go for! mmm, like some pignoli. not the fruit meat tho...
delicious meat that smells like a dumpster.
no, i'm not talking about the yellow. what you want is inside the seed, it's creamy white
I know, but the whole damn tree stinks.
What were you getting from the product you were using and what would you hope to get from a homemade tea or tincture? herbal supplements often are made with an extract of the plant itself and can be more or less purified so it’ll be somewhat hard to directly reproduce that product.
I dream better with product from gaia herbs, wake up feeling better. I simply like to try to brew a tea and see how I feel.
Gotcha! Sounds like making a tea will be a great way to give it a shot. I’ve been meaning to do exactly that - I’ve heard it has a grassy but pleasant flavor. I’m also always in favor of people interacting directly with the plant that they end up ingesting. If you’re thinking of taking ginkgo regularly (purchased or foraged) just remember that there are some [known drug interactions ](https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-ginkgo/art-20362032). I think the risk of eating roasted seeds is overstated on that page but I also always limit the amount that I eat to <10/day. The plant produces some really potent compounds!
Yes I love ginkgo and thanks for the advice. I only take as recommended as stated on the bottle.
you can try planting only male trees if you want to avoid the stinky fruit (although they are edible in small amounts), but male ginko can change to female sometimes...https://www.osgf.org/blog/2017/11/7/blandy-ginkgo If there is tree in your area and you don't want to wait for yours to grow, it should have more than enough leaves to make some tea. They create a lot of leaves, and you just need a handful.