Common yewis a species that is very common in gardens and parks. It is valued for its very elegant appearance, expressive dark-green color of the needles and slow growth, which makes it easy to tame this plant.Common yew perfectly tolerates pruning , making it suitable for hedges and plant carvings. See whatcommon yew cultivation looks likein the garden, choose the most beautifulgarden yew varietiesworth planting and learn how toreproduce yew that are already growing in your garden!
Common yew - Taxus baccata <p
Common yew(Taxus baccata) in the form of a tree grows up to 15-20 m in height, and in a shrub form up to 4 m. The translation of its name from Latin is having berries. This species of evergreen coniferous tree, belonging to the yew family, occurs naturally in Europe, West Asia and North Africa. It is a long-lived plant, which is related to its slow growth. In Poland, the oldest yew grows in Henryków Lubański, in the Dolnośląskie Province. Its age is estimated at around 1300 years. "
Yew bark is initially green , but with time it becomes more orange and then brown. The needles are about 2.5 cm long - they are flattened, with a short tail at the base. They can stay on the shoot for up to 8 years.Yew is a dioecious treeMale flower buds are yellow and female flower buds are greenish. The seeds take an ovoid, brown or olive color.The whole is surrounded by a red parchment.
Yew in gardens is used as a hedge , which is an ideal barrier against the wind. It can also be used to create garden sculptures.
Good to knowYews are poisonous. It is related to the presence of a toxic alkaloid in their tissues - taxin. Only the matrix does not show such properties. Taxin can seriously harm the entire body, and poisoning with it can even lead to death. That is why we should carry out all cultivation work in yew trees with due care and avoid planting these plants in gardens used by young children. More on this in the article: Is yew poisonous?
Common yew - cultivation
Common yew is quite easy to grow . There are no too high requirements. It is worth paying attention to the fact that it also grows well on alkaline soils - as one of the few conifers!
Selection of the position and requirements of the common yew
Common yew grows best in shaded positionsIf someone needs shade-loving conifers, then yew is usually recommended. The exceptions are cultivars with a golden color of needles, which need more sun.
The best growth of yew is achieved in fertile, moist and well-drained soilsIt does not prefer dry, barren, highly acidic and wetlands. It does well in slightly alkaline soil, so it is advisable to apply liming before planting. It is a species tolerant to environmental pollution, therefore it is also suitable as a plant in urban agglomerations.Cisom corresponds to high air humidity , therefore they grow well in the immediate vicinity of a pond.
How to plant yew?
Yew trees should be planted to the depthat which they grew in a pot or earlier in the nursery. The spacing is selected depending on the variety purchased by us.Plants grown in pots are planted throughout the season, except when the ground is frozen. When buying yew trees for a hedge, it is best to choose columnar varieties, such as: Fastigiata, Overeynderi, Dovastoniana, whichare planted approximately 40 cm apart
Common yew - planting on a hedge
Yew trees have a compact root system , so we can replant even large specimens.
How to water yew?
Water the yew generously enough to moisten the approx. 30 cm layer of soil. Plants are watered mainly during drought. We pay special attention to newly planted yews and young specimens.
Fertilization of the common yew
Freshly planted plants should not be fertilized for at least two weeks.In the case of yew trees, we use multi-component fertilizers(macro and microelements) in divided doses (2-3 doses) every 3-4 weeks from March to June.Remember to fertilize especially after cutting the yews, because then the plant needs the most nutrients for proper regeneration. However, nitrogen fertilizers should not be used from the end of July, because they stimulate the plants to grow before the fall, and young, not fully woody shoots may freeze later.
Yew care, cutting and weeding
Care treatments for yewsare easy and do not require a lot of work. The most important thing is to trim them regularly, especially when it comes to those plants from which we create a hedge or interesting gardening figures.
We perform yew pruning in early spring(March, April), before the vegetation starts. If necessary, we can cut again in summer (July, August) so that they can regenerate before winter. Yew tolerates strong and frequent pruning very well. One of the rules used when making pruning is shortening last year's growths by half, because too long shoots will not branch well.Old, dry and brown shoots should be removed next to the trunk.Yew has strong regenerative properties , thanks to which new shoots can break out of dormant buds. We prune young plants twice a season, while older yews are pruned only once.
If tall weeds appear just below the yews (especially when it comes to young and newly planted yews) and take away their water, they can cause the needles to die. Therefore, it is very important to regularly remove weeds in the immediate vicinity of the yews.
Common yew - varieties
Varieties of common yew in a columnar habit:
Common yew 'Overeynderi'- reaches approx. 4 m in height. The variety is perfect for creating a hedge or for the so-called. garden exclamation marks, makes a good material for garden sculpture. It is highly frost-resistant, the needles are black and green. It is a male variety that bears no fruit.
Common yew 'David'- a low variety, up to 2.5 m high, whose branches are arranged vertically, does not grow sideways. Takes cut well. It is a male variety, it does not bear red fruit.
Varieties of common yew with a creeping habit:
Common yew 'Repandens'- a low variety, to a height of approx. 0.5-1 m. Side shoots stiff, slightly bent downwards. Dark green needles bent upwards. It is especially used as a ground cover in shaded places. We can use it for single or group plantings.
Varieties of common yew with colorful leaves:
Common yew 'Fastigiata Aureomarginata'- a variety that grows up to a height of 2 m, with characteristic needles with a yellow border, with the main shoots positioned vertically. It is grown in home and rock gardens.
Common yew 'Summergold'- the variety grows to a height of 1 m. It has a compact and spreading habit. In sunny places, the needles are light yellow in summer. A variety with good frost resistance.
Common yew - reproduction
Common yew is a dioecious plant- female and male flowers grow on separate plants. So, having two of the same sex in the garden, we will never see the beautiful fruits of the yew tree.
Yews can be propagated from seedsHowever, this method of reproduction is quite difficult and the emergence is irregular. Plants propagated in this way do not always repeat the characteristics of the mother plant. This method is not recommended especially when we want to obtain color variations. However, if we decide to propagate theyew seed from seeds , harvest the ripe fruit in the fall and then clean it of the aril. We store the cleaned seeds for about 3 months at 20 ° C, and 4 months before sowing, we stratify them at 5 ° C. The seeds are sown in the fall or spring of next year in the ground with deacidified peat soil mixed with sand and stored in the inspection.
IndividualYew varieties are propagated from cuttingsThis is the most common and the simplest method of reproducing this conifer. Maintains the ornamental characteristics of the mother plant. Pick the cuttings in the fall (woody cuttings take on better). Clean the taken fragments of shoots at the base of the needles and then place them in the rooting agent.We keep the seedlings for inspection. In spring, we place the rooted cuttings in pots, and in the late summer or spring of the following year, we plant them outside.
