Virginia Tech Dendrology

English yew Taxaceae Taxus baccata L. symbol: TABA80
Leaf: Evergreen needles, single, spirally arranged but appearing 2-ranked on shaded branches, 1 inch long, long pointed tip, needles typically angled upward forming a V-shape on branch, dark green and shiny above, yellow or pale green below with 8-10 stomatal rows.
Flower: Species is dioecious; male flowers are small, round, and yellow and are borne on the undersides of the leaves; female flowers are solitary.
Fruit: Naked ovoid seed 1/4 inch long, surrounded by a bright red, fleshy aril, maturing in late summer, persistent through fall.
Twig: Light green in color, turning brown after several years; buds green with scales keeled.
Bark: Dark, usually red-purple, and scaly or somewhat peeling.
Form: Small tree or large shrub up to 60 feet tall with many limbed boles and a short trunk.
Looks like: Pacific yew - Japanese yew - Anglo-Jap yew - eastern hemlock

Additional Range Information: Taxus baccata is planted in the USDA hardiness zones shown above and is not known to widely escape cultivaton. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database - Horticulture Information
All material 2025 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information