Ginkgo trees produce pungent odor

To the editor:

Apparently dissatisfied with Cedar Rapids' unofficial motto - the City of Five Smells - the city seeks to add a sixth smell, that of the ginkgo tree.

The plans for the Greene Square renovation project include '28 column-style ginkgo trees” arranged to create a 'tree avenue.” Female ginkgo trees produce seeds that notoriously smell like 'a mix of vomit and putrid cheese” (David Marcelis, 'Ginkgo Trees Stink Up Cities When Seeds Fall,” Wall Street Journal, Nov. 24, 2014). The ginkgo seeds contain butyric acid, which gives rancid butter and vomit their distinctive smells.

Perhaps the planners of the renovation intend to plant only male trees, but if so, they are missing an opportunity to leave an olfactory legacy to the city that will endure in the noses of generations to come.

Karen Erger

Ely