Would appreciate an ID on this leaf; picked of an "extremely straight" tree of 18' in height with very few limbs. The variagated leave is natural color and is on every leaf on the tree (i.e. not wilting) Leaf is about 2" across The specter in the background is me, wearing a hoodie.
View attachment 76319
My First impression is Ginko Biloba - based on my 7th Grade Science Leaf project. we had a list of required species to collect, some with hints where some were located around the area. The Ginko was the Easiest to find. there are 2 of them planted in Front of the JCPenney at our Mall...
"Given the slow rate of evolution of the genus,
Ginkgo possibly represents a pre-
angiosperm strategy for survival in disturbed streamside environments.
Ginkgo evolved in an era before flowering plants, when
ferns,
cycads, and
cycadeoids dominated disturbed streamside environments, forming low, open, shrubby canopies.
Ginkgo's large seeds and habit of "bolting" – growing to a height of 10 meters before elongating its side branches – may be adaptations to such an environment.
Modern-day
G. biloba grows best in environments that are well-watered and drained,
[18]: 87 and the extremely similar fossil
Ginkgo favored similar environments: The sediment record at the majority of fossil
Ginkgo localities indicates it grew primarily in
disturbed environments, such as along streams"
- Taken from Wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.org
I colored a key description in
orange.
