Yews (Taxus) trees and shrubs types, planting and care

Yews (Taxus) trees and shrubs types, planting and care

Splendid Evergreens for Many Landscape Uses

Taxus (Tax'us) are beautiful evergreen trees and shrubs that are natives of North America, Europe and Asia. They belong to the Yew family, Taxaceae. The name is an old Latin one for Taxus baccata, the European Yew.

The leaves are small and, in most cases, are dark green on wild trees, but they are variable in color on cultivated forms. Male and female flowers are usually produced on different trees in early spring. The male flowers are yellow and produced in small catkins; the female flowers are greenish, very small, and difficult to find. The fruit is a small, hard, dark green or brownish seed surrounded, except at the apex, by a fleshy envelope that is red and juicy when ripe.

Shoots, leaves and seeds contain poisonous properties, and have proved fatal to both human beings and cattle. This is especially true of the English Yew. The flesh surrounding the seeds, however, is not toxic, and it is interesting to note that deer eat the foliage of Taxus cuspidata with relish and without apparent harm.

It is generally understood that shoots and leaves are in their most dangerous state when partly withered.

Valuable for Landscaping. Yews are among the finest evergreens for landscaping uses. In addition to the wild kinds, there are numerous garden varieties and hybrids which show great variation in height, habit of growth and other important characteristics and this makes it possible for the planter to select from among them those that suit his purposes best.

Yews, allowed to grow without clipping or shearing, develop into magnificent specimen plants, but they stand pruning well and are among the finest of all evergreens for planting as formal hedges and for topiary work. (See Topiary Work.) The prostrate and spreading kinds are effective ground covers.

Yews may be transplanted without undue difficulty even when quite large. Should they outgrow their allotted space, they may be pruned back severely and will "break" (put forth new shoots) even from thick old branches that have been cut back. In this respect they differ from many other evergreens.

Yews Thrive in Most Soils. Very fine old trees are often found growing naturally on limestone soils, but they also grow on sandy loam, heavy loam and on peat. They do not succeed where the subsoil is waterlogged, and even old trees may be killed by the sudden raising of the natural water level, as is brought about by flooding or by the silting up of ditches or open drains, obstructions in drainpipes or by grading operations.

View original post here:
Yews (Taxus) trees and shrubs types, planting and care