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Home > Yew > English Yew

English Yew

Originally known just as Yew, the English yew moniker started becoming commonplace when other trees of this genus were discovered. It is found across Europe and in parts of Asia and Africa as well. It is sometimes considered a shrub because of its average medium maximum size  despite the columnar structure.

English Yew

Scientific Classification

KingdomPlantae
DivisionPinophyta
ClassPinopsida
OrderPinales
FamilyTaxaceae
GenusTaxus
Scientific NameTaxus baccata

Weeping English Yew

English Yew Tree

Quick Information

Other NamesCommon yew, European yew
Tree TypeEvergreen
Identification

Size: 33-66 ft (10-20 m)

Needles (Leaves): Dark green, flat, 0.39-1.57 in (1-4 cm) in length, 0.079-0.118 in (2-3 mm) broad, spirally arranged on the stem, poisonous

Trunk Diameter: 6 ft 7 in (2 m)

Bark: Scaly brown in color and thin

Seed Cones: 0.16-0.28 (4-7 mm) length, surrounded in part by a fleshy scale which turns into a bright red colored structure known as aril, which itself is around 0.31-0.59 in (8-15 mm)

Male Cones:  Ovoid with a quarter inch of a diameter

DistributionThroughout Europe, from Turkey to Iran in Asia and in the African countries of Algeria and Morocco
HabitatMixed forests, coniferous forests, and mixed broad-leaved coniferous forests
Cultivars
  • T. b. ‘Fastigiata’
  • ·T. b. ’ Fastigiata Aureomarginata’
  • T. baccata ‘Icicle’
  • T. baccata ‘Semperaurea’
  • T. baccata ‘Repandens’ or spreading English yew
  • T. baccata ‘Repens Aurea’ or golden English yew
  • T. baccata ‘Standishii’
Hardiness Zones5B-7B
Growth RateSlow
LifespanUsually 400-600 years
Growing ConditionsSummer Conditions: Clipping required once around late summer

Winter Conditions: Faces difficulty in places with snow and fluctuating winters, as the sunlight during the day and freezing temperatures during the night causes the needles to go brown

Light: Tolerant of shade but grows faster in open conditions

Soil: Grows in a variety of soils, including chalk soils

Diseases & PestsRoot rot and honey fungus
Breeding SystemDioecious
PropagationBy cuttings
Seedling DevelopmentSeeds prone to take long to germinate, often close to two years
Wildlife ValueArils are eaten by many birds like thrushes, waxwings; seeds consumed by greenfinches, hawfinches, and great tits
UsesUsed in making longbows and woodwork because of hard softwood; the bark of this tree has medicinal properties; also the ability of this tree to withstand pruning makes it popular as a hedge
IUCN Conservation StatusLeast Concern

Dwarf English Yew

English Weeping Yew

Interesting Facts

  • Some botanists consider the Himalayan Yew to be a subspecies of the English Yew.
  • An English yew in Scotland, called the Fortingall Yew, has the greatest trunk diameter among all trees in Britain, and estimates suggest that it is between 2,000-3,000 years old.

English Yew Pictures

English Yew Hedge

References:

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxus_baccata#Uses_and_traditions
  2. https://www.britannica.com/plant/English-yew
  3. http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=115
  4. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/42546/117052436
  5. https://www.weekand.com/home-garden/article/yew-varieties-18070224.php
  6. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/st624
  7. https://www.bellarmine.edu/faculty/drobinson/EnglishYew.asp
  8. https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/2006/5-17/yew.html
  9. https://www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/blog/dead-and-dying-yew-trees-and-hedges/
  10. https://pfaf.org/User/plant.aspx?LatinName=Taxus+baccata

Published on April 4th 2017 by Sudipto Chakrabarti under Yew.
Article was last reviewed on 26th June 2023.

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