The ginkgos that survived Hiroshima

verdavita editorial team · 2026-11-05

Some of the trees that stood in Hiroshima in August 1945 are still alive. Ginkgos became the best known of these survivor trees, called hibakujumoku in Japanese.

Burned, but not gone

The bombing burned their leaves, stripped branches and scorched bark. Inside, some trees survived and later grew again. One source counts about 170 trees that had stood in Hiroshima before the bombing and were still growing in 2011.

Seeds of peace

The group Green Legacy Hiroshima collects seeds from these trees and shares them with universities and botanic gardens. A 2025 report says their offspring grow at 146 partner institutions in 41 countries.

A very old kind of tree

Oxford Botanic Garden describes Ginkgo biloba as a living fossil. Its story here is about memory and resilience in a tree, and says nothing about what a supplement does.

Sources

• Oxford Botanic Garden: Seeds from Hiroshima survivor trees
• Bates College: Hibakujumoku seeds
• San Diego Botanic Garden: Survivor tree commemoration

History, not health advice. A plant's past does not show what a supplement does. Images are illustrative.