There was quite a stink about the ginkgo trees in downtown Ames a couple of years ago.

Because of their smelly seeds, many downtown merchants and passersby wanted the trees removed. But the ginkgo trees remained and the Ginkgo Festival emerged.

The Second Annual Ginkgo Festival will take place July 12-14 in downtown Ames at the Bandshell Park.

Last year, organizers of the event took a comical look at the tree situation and turned it into something fun.

“It was kind of an interesting dilemma that caught the ear and eye and nose, I guess, of the organizers of the Ginkgo Festival,” said Richard Harter of the Ames Convention & Visitors Bureau.

“Because the entire controversy almost became sort of sublime and made people laugh at themselves a little bit and made them laugh at the situation, we decided to create what we call The Ginkgo Festival… A Celebration of Laughter.”

Harter said the planning committee wanted to create a summer festival for people of all ages that was based on fun, health and wellness, the arts and multicultural activity.

He said the ginkgo tree seemed fitting because it had a “global element to it.” The tree originally came from China and it is a survivor from the Jurassic period.

Many of the favorite activities from last year will return again for the free festival. A major part of the three-day event is Midnight Madness, a 5K and 10K road race which includes a bicycle element. Another returning attraction is the Virtual Parade. Unlike the usual parade, this one stands still while the audience moves by.

The Octagon Center For The Arts, 427 Douglas Ave., will once again sponsor the Kreature Park, a hands-on creative program for kids, as well as Art Where You Park, an art fair outside the center.

Two new attractions to look forward to are the Box City and the Virtual Fireworks. The Box City will be built on Main Street by children and their families under the guidance of the American Institute of Architects. Hartman said the Virtual Fireworks is still being developed.

Other activities include live music, arts and crafts demonstrations, walking tours of historic Ames, carriage rides, and lectures put on by the Ames Public Library and the Octagon Art Center.