Taxus baccata - Yew

The Taxus baccata or Common Yew is a majestic conifer appreciated for its density and perfect silhouette. Particularly suitable for pruning, it provides structure by creating evergreen hedges with impeccable lines. Its slow growth reduces pruning requirements. Depending on your budget, the length of your hedge, your patience, and the time you can devote to gardening, different types of products are available to you.

-For an economical yew hedge, opt for 9cm pots that you can plant all year round. Soil preparation should be meticulous (careful weeding, removal of all roots, planting trench), and it is preferable to lay a weed suppressant at the base of the bushes to limit weed germination until they establish themselves. Once established, they develop quickly and will soon catch up with their cultivated counterparts in larger pots. This is the most economical solution when it comes to creating a hedge of at least 10m (32.8 ft) in length.

- For a faster-growing yew hedge or to fill in an existing hedge, your choice will be bushes in 3-litre or even 7.5-litre pots. Potted bushes can be planted all year round, except during freezing or heatwave periods. They are planted in individual planting holes, like all other shrubs in the garden. While they make an immediate impact, they take a little longer to establish and will require more frequent and regular watering, especially when the summer is dry.

Respect the proper planting distance according to the size of your plant! It is advisable to allow a space of 60cm (23.6in) between each plant for plants in pots, 70 to 80cm (31.5in) for plants in 2 or 3-litre pots, 80cm (31.5in) to 1m (3.3ft) for pots from 4 to 10 litres, 1m (3.3ft) to 1.2m (3.3ft) for pots larger than 10 litres.

Very present in the oldest gardens and parks in Europe, Taxus baccata sometimes live for hundreds of years. Their longevity is indeed remarkable and can exceed a century. They are sometimes relegated to cemeteries, near churches for symbolic reasons (considered to be the link between heaven and earth), but also to prevent herds from consuming them. The needles, bark, and fruits are toxic to humans and animals (except birds that consume the berries and discard the seeds).

With slow growth, this conifer can reach a height of 10 or 15m (32.8 or 49.2ft)  and a width of 4m (13.1ft), but only after many long years. Its initially conical habit becomes rounder as it ages and can spread widely if not pruned. Its long, and multiple branches allow for a fairly dense network that does not thin out at the base. Covered with green, shiny, sharp-tipped, but very soft needles, it is adorned with a thick and regular evergreen layer in winter. It thus brings a presence throughout the seasons and often constitutes the backbone of the garden. It is a dioecious tree: male or female flowers appear only on separate individuals. Thus, red berries appear after discreet flowering only on female plants.

Hardy, the Common Yew withstands cold (-15°C (5°F)) and is happy in any type of soil: ordinary, slightly acidic, or chalk. It will tolerate wind and can be an excellent windbreak. it only requires pruning twice per year, and it will regenerate after a severe cut into the old wood. Indifferent to exposure, it can even be planted in shade. If you want to keep it near entrances, it can also be grown in containers.

The possibilities offered by Taxus baccata are endless for the patient gardener. Its fine and soft needles form a thick coat that allows for the most severe or whimsical shapes. It encloses, outlines, and sculpts spaces, thanks to its always green and flawless "fur". It finds its place in all gardens and adapts to all styles: formal or informal. It is also often shaped into bonsai.