Tree or shrubconiferStraightforward

Yew

Taxus baccata

Before you grow or eat this

Every part of a yew except the red fleshy aril around the seed contains taxine alkaloids, which stop the heart. There is no reliable antidote and poisoning is frequently fatal — in livestock, animals are often simply found dead beside clippings. The seed inside the red berry is toxic; the flesh is not, which makes berries the most dangerous thing about it for a child. Never leave clippings where animals can reach them and never dispose of them over a field boundary — dried clippings stay toxic and are more palatable to stock than the living plant. Seek medical advice immediately if any quantity is eaten rather than waiting for symptoms.

The best hedging plant in Britain and the most poisonous. It is far faster than its reputation suggests — 20 to 30 cm a year on decent ground — it is the only common conifer that regrows from bare old wood, and every part of it except the red flesh of the berry is lethally toxic.

Position: Full sun or Partial shade or Dappled shade or Full shade
Water: low demand
Drainage: Free-draining
Grows to: 500–1500 cm × 400–1000 cm
Hardiness: H7
Difficulty: Straightforward

Described view

One face of an overgrown yew hedge cut back to bare trunks, with new growth breaking from old wood after two seasons

August

Prune

Coming next month: plant.

Yew’s year

Resolved for United Kingdom (general). Every window is stored against a climate event rather than a date, so a late frost pocket runs later than the band shows. What else August calls for.

Activity	J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
Plant				April.					September.	October.
Prune								August.	September.

Timing that travels

The band above resolves this plant's windows into months for one region. These are the windows themselves, stored against a climate event rather than a date — which is the form that survives being carried to a colder garden, a frost pocket, or next year.

Conditions it needs

Light: Full sun, Partial shade, Dappled shade, Full shade
Frost: Very hardy
Hardiness rating: H7 (RHS)
Grows best at: 5–25 °C
Soil: Chalky, Loam, Clay, Sandy
Soil pH: 5.5–8
Drainage: Free-draining
Water needs: low
Drought: good tolerance
Waterlogging: poor tolerance
Heat: good tolerance
Wind and exposure: good tolerance

Where these figures come from

LightSourced guidancemoderate confidence

Royal Horticultural Society: Yew — position

Checked 2026-08-13

FrostSourced guidancehigh confidence

Royal Horticultural Society: Yew — hardiness

Checked 2026-08-13

Hardiness ratingSourced guidancemoderate confidence

Royal Horticultural Society: RHS hardiness ratings

Checked 2026-08-13

Grows best atSourced guidancemoderate confidence

Royal Horticultural Society: Yew — temperature

Checked 2026-08-13

SoilSourced guidancemoderate confidence

Royal Horticultural Society: Yew — soil

Checked 2026-08-13

Soil pHSourced guidancemoderate confidence

Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden: Taxus baccata — culture

Checked 2026-08-13

DrainageSourced guidancemoderate confidence

Royal Horticultural Society: Yew — soil

Checked 2026-08-13

Water needsHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

DroughtHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

WaterloggingHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

Wet feet is the one thing that kills an established yew.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

HeatHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Wind and exposureHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

On your soil

Computed by comparing this plant's recorded requirements against each soil's recorded characteristics. A recorded horticultural fact overrides the comparison where GrowingHQ holds one.

Soil	Verdict	Why
Heavy clay	Works, with one condition	Yew will crop on heavy clay, but one thing has to be dealt with first. It needs ground that drains, and this soil holds water. A plant that stays in the ground through winter with its roots in cold, saturated soil rots — which is what kills most of what fails on heavy ground, rather than the cold.Improve the drainage before planting — a raised bed, or bulky organic matter worked in over several seasons. Do not add sand to clay in small quantities; it makes the problem worse.
Sandy	Prefers this soil	Sandy suits Yew as it stands: The pH suits it: it wants 5.5 to 8, and this soil is in that range. The free drainage is exactly what it wants. Sandy soil is among the soils it is recorded as suiting. It stands dry conditions better than most, which this soil will test.
Chalky and alkaline	Prefers this soil	Chalky and alkaline suits Yew as it stands: The free drainage is exactly what it wants. Chalky soil is among the soils it is recorded as suiting. It stands dry conditions better than most, which this soil will test.
Loam	Prefers this soil	Loam suits Yew as it stands: The pH suits it: it wants 5.5 to 8, and this soil is in that range. The free drainage is exactly what it wants. Loam is among the soils it is recorded as suiting. The soil holds moisture, which saves a great deal of watering.
Silty	Prefers this soil	Silty suits Yew as it stands: The pH suits it: it wants 5.5 to 8, and this soil is in that range. The free drainage is exactly what it wants. The soil holds moisture, which saves a great deal of watering.
Peaty and acid	Works, with one condition	Yew will crop on peaty and acid, but one thing has to be dealt with first. It needs ground that drains, and this soil holds water. A plant that stays in the ground through winter with its roots in cold, saturated soil rots — which is what kills most of what fails on heavy ground, rather than the cold.Improve the drainage before planting — a raised bed, or bulky organic matter worked in over several seasons. Do not add sand to clay in small quantities; it makes the problem worse.
Shallow over rock	Prefers this soil	Shallow over rock suits Yew as it stands: The free drainage is exactly what it wants. Loam is among the soils it is recorded as suiting. It stands dry conditions better than most, which this soil will test.
Made ground and urban soil	Works, with one condition	Yew will crop on made ground and urban soil, but one thing has to be dealt with first. It needs ground that drains, and this soil holds water. A plant that stays in the ground through winter with its roots in cold, saturated soil rots — which is what kills most of what fails on heavy ground, rather than the cold.Improve the drainage before planting — a raised bed, or bulky organic matter worked in over several seasons. Do not add sand to clay in small quantities; it makes the problem worse.

Not sure which you have? Four hand tests will settle it.

Space and spacing

Mature height: 500–1500 cm
Mature spread: 400–1000 cm
Rooting depth: 120 cm
Spacing: 50–400 cm apart

Where these figures come from

Mature heightHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence: No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
Mature spreadHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence: No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
Rooting depthHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence: No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13
SpacingSourced guidancemoderate confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Yew — spacing
Checked 2026-08-13

Measured centre to centre. Plants set closer than this compete for light and water long before they look crowded, and the crowding cannot be undone once they are in.

Habit and ultimate size

What the plant becomes, rather than what it is when you buy it. The gap between the two is where most planting mistakes live.

Foliage: Evergreen
In a container: Good in a container long-term

Where these figures come from

FoliageSourced guidancehigh confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — foliage
Checked 2026-08-13
In a containerHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence: No external citation — see the evidence type above.
Checked 2026-08-13

Growth rate: Moderate — roughly 30–60 cm a year
Ultimate height: 500–1500 cm
Ultimate spread: 400–1000 cm
Time to reach it: 40–80 yearsSourced guidance

Where these figures come from

Growth rateSourced guidancemoderate confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — growth rate
Checked 2026-08-13
Ultimate heightSourced guidancemoderate confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — ultimate height
Checked 2026-08-13
Ultimate spreadSourced guidancemoderate confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — ultimate spread
Checked 2026-08-13
Time to reach itSourced guidancelow confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — time to ultimate size
Checked 2026-08-13

Root space. Deep-rooting and drought-tolerant once established, and intolerant of standing water at any age. On heavy ground plant on a slight ridge; a yew in a hole that holds winter water dies, and it is the only thing that reliably kills one.

source

Horticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Cutting it back. The reason to plant yew. It is the only common hedging conifer that breaks freely from bare old wood, so an overgrown hedge can be cut back into the trunks and will refurnish over three or four years — one face at a time, a year apart. Leylandii, thuja and chamaecyparis cannot do this at all.

source

Horticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Where and how you can grow it

Each way of growing is assessed separately, and “not assessed” is a real answer rather than a gap we have filled in with a guess.

Method	Suitability	What it needs
Open ground	Well suited source Sourced guidancemoderate confidence Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability Checked 2026-08-13
Traditional dug bed	Workable source Sourced guidancemoderate confidence Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability Checked 2026-08-13
Container	Workable source Sourced guidancemoderate confidence Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability Checked 2026-08-13
Raised bed	Marginal source Sourced guidancemoderate confidence Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability Checked 2026-08-13	A raised bed rarely holds enough soil volume for a tree beyond its first few years.

Growing it

PruningYew is the only common conifer that breaks freely from old bare wood, which means an overgrown hedge can be cut right back into the trunks and will refurnish over three or four years. Do one face at a time, a year apart. No leylandii, thuja or chamaecyparis will do this, and the difference is the whole argument for yew.
PlantingDrainage is the only thing that matters. Yew grows happily on thin chalk and on clay, and dies on ground that lies wet in winter — on a heavy site plant on a slight ridge rather than in a hollow, and never into a hole that holds water.

Where this guidance comes from

PruningSourced guidancehigh confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — renovation
Checked 2026-08-13
PlantingSourced guidancehigh confidence: Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — soil
Checked 2026-08-13

The bud you cut to becomes the new shoot, and it grows in the direction it points — which is why an outward-facing bud opens the plant up and an inward-facing one crosses the middle.

Safety and edibility

Cats and dogsCan be dangerous — treat as urgent

Listed as harmful to cats or dogs

Yew is listed as harmful if eaten. Every part except the red fleshy aril around the seed contains taxine alkaloids, which act directly on cardiac conduction. There is no reliable antidote and death can follow within hours with no warning signs beforehand. Dried clippings remain fully toxic and are more palatable than the living foliage, which is why hedge trimmings thrown over a field boundary are the classic cause of livestock deaths.

source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center — toxic and non-toxic plant list — American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals: Taxus baccata — toxic plants list
Veterinary Poisons Information Service — VPIS, London: Taxus baccata — clinical effects

Checked 2026-08-13

Affected parts: all parts, leaf, seed.

Toxicitychildrenpetslivestock
Every part of a yew except the red fleshy aril around the seed contains taxine alkaloids, which stop the heart. There is no reliable antidote and poisoning is frequently fatal — in livestock, animals are often simply found dead beside clippings. The seed inside the red berry is toxic; the flesh is not, which makes berries the most dangerous thing about it for a child.
source
Sourced guidancehigh confidence
- Royal Horticultural Society: Taxus baccata — toxicity
Checked 2026-08-13
Never leave clippings where animals can reach them and never dispose of them over a field boundary — dried clippings stay toxic and are more palatable to stock than the living plant. Seek medical advice immediately if any quantity is eaten rather than waiting for symptoms.

Sources for this page

GrowingHQ editorial synthesis · Plant Finder · Royal Horticultural Society

Each figure on this page carries its own citation, under the “where these figures come from” note in its section. Record last reviewed 2026-08-14.