Taxus baccata

English Yew
Taxaceae
Evergreen, Shrubs, Trees

TAXUS

Yews are conifers, but they do not bear cones. Instead, they produce fleshy, scarlet (rarely yellow), cup-shaped, single-seeded, berrylike fruit. In general, yews are darker green, more formal looking, and more tolerant of shade and moisture than most cultivated conifers. Long lived; take much shearing and pruning, since they sprout from bare wood.

Taxus baccata

From Europe, north Africa, west Asia. Grows 25 to 40 ft. or taller, 15 to 25 ft.wide, with a broad, low crown. Needles are 1/2 to 1 1/2 in. long, dark green and glossy above, pale beneath; spirally arranged.

'Fastigiata' ('Stricta')

This becomes a green column 15 to 30 ft. tall, 3 to 10 ft.wide. Has larger needles and more crowded, upright branches than the species. Branches tend to spread near the top, especially in snowy regions or where moisture is plentiful. To minimize that, branches can be wired together. Plants that outgrow their space can be reduced by heading back and thinning; old wood sprouts freely. There is a form with yellowish-white variegation.

'Repandens'

Long, horizontal, spreading branches make this a 2 to 4-ft.-high ground cover. It extends to 8–10 ft. wide after many years.Useful low foundation plant. Will arch over wall.