Search Fact Sheets Virginia Tech Dendrology

Japanese yew Taxaceae Taxus cuspidata Siebold & Zucc. Listen to the Latin Print a QR link to this factsheet symbol: TACU
Leaf: Evergreen needles, single, spirally arranged but appearing 2-ranked on shaded branches, needles lay very flat, approximately 1 inch long, dark green and shiny above, tip abruptly pointed, yellow or pale green below with 12-15 rows of stomates.
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 keeled scales, female flower buds are pointed, males rounded.
Bark: Always thin (about 1/4 inch), reddish brown, and scaly; inner bark is reddish purple.
Form: Small tree or large shrub to 25 feet, with many limbed boles and a short trunk.
Looks like: English yew - Pacific yew - Anglo-Jap yew - eastern hemlock

Japanese yew leaf image
Japanese yew flower image
Japanese yew fruit image
Japanese yew twig image
Japanese yew bark image
Japanese yew form image
Japanese yew map image

Additional Range Information: Taxus cuspidata is planted in the USDA hardiness zones shown above and may seed into the landscape. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
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