Scientific Name:
Taxus brevifolia
Pronunciation:
TACKS-us bree-vih-FOE-lee-uh
Common Name:
Pacific yew, western yew
Family Name:
Taxaceae
Plant Type:
Conifer
Key ID Features:
Small tree 2-15m tall, often shrubby or irregular; branches spreading to drooping in flat sprays; leaves whorled but appearing 2-ranked, linear (8-)12-18(-35)mm long x 1-3mm wide, yellow-green, petiole about 1mm long, decurrent leaf base 5-8mm long; male cones rounded on separate trees, 3mm long; seed cones with aril round to less commonly oval, up to 1cm wide, seed ovoid, 5-6.5mm long. Conifers.org
Habit:
Dense, Irregular
Form:
Oval - vertical
Texture:
Medium - fine
Mature Height:
15 - 22m
Mature Spread:
5 - 7m
Growth Rate:
Slow
Origin:
B.C. west of Cascades, U.S. - northwest
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 6: (-23 to -18 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade, Deep shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Forestry, Medicinal plant, Native planting, Reclamation, Tall background, Waterside planting, Wildlife food, Woodland margin (Caution: poisonous parts)
Additional Info:
Google. Similar to English yew but more irregular and has slightly shorter and narrower, yellow-green leaves.
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple, Needle-like
Arrangement:
Alternate, Spiraled
Texture/Venation:
Leathery
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Summer:
Green, Green-yellow, pale underneath
Shapes:
Falcate, Linear
Apices:
Mucronate
Bases:
Cuneate, Decurrent
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
12 to 25mm long x 2mm wide, flat, arranged in two rows in flat sprays
Inflorescence Type:
n/a (male cone)
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Colour (petals):
Male cone, No flowers, Yellow, Brown
Flower Time at Peak:
Mar, Apr
Fruit Type:
Cone (winged seeds)
Fruit Colour:
Red
Fruiting Time:
Sep
Additional Info:
Showy, Accessory tissue, Persistent, Drupe-like: single seed 4–7 mm long (poisonous) that is partly surrounded by a modified scale which develops into a soft, bright red berry-like structure called an aril, 8–15 mm long and wide and open at the end.
Bark Morphology:
Showy, Shaggy
Bark or Stem Colour:
Red, Brown
Additional Info:
young bark smooth; trunk often fluted or twisted
Propagation:
Seed
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant)
Course(s):
- AARB 1012
- HORT 2355
Location(s):
- (TFL) Turf Field Lab
- (TFLW) Turf Field Lab West
- (WDH) Wark-Dumais House
- (WLG) WoodLand Garden