Y is for…..Yews
By Baldmichael Theresoluteprotector’sson
Why? Why yews that is? Y not? To be honest, there is not a huge amount of Y words to choose from and this seemed to be worth doing.
Not that there isn’t a fair bit online anyway. And probably not worth my saying too much. But they are a rather fascinating tree in many ways.
For starters (which is why this page is in Starters of course on my World Menu), they are usually very long lived. And there are quite a few varieties it seems. See links below.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yew
This gives some interesting definitions.
https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Yews
2. yew – any of numerous evergreen trees or shrubs having red cup-shaped berries and flattened needlelike leaves
yew – any of numerous evergreen trees or shrubs having red cup-shaped berries and flattened needlelike leaves
California nutmeg, nutmeg-yew, Torreya californica – California evergreen having a fruit resembling a nutmeg but with a strong turpentine flavor
stinking cedar, stinking yew, Torrey tree, Torreya taxifolia – rare small evergreen of northern Florida; its glossy green leaves have an unpleasant fetid smell when crushed
family Taxaceae, Taxaceae, yew family – sometimes classified as member of order Taxales
yew – wood of a yew; especially the durable fine-grained light brown or red wood of the English yew valued for cabinetwork and archery bows
English yew, Old World yew, Taxus baccata – predominant yew in Europe; extraordinarily long-lived and slow growing; one of the oldest species in the world
California yew, Pacific yew, Taxus brevifolia, western yew – small or medium irregularly branched tree of the Pacific coast of North America; yields fine hard close-grained wood
Japanese yew, Taxus cuspidata – shrubby hardy evergreen of China and Japan having lustrous dark green foliage; cultivated in the eastern United States
Florida yew, Taxus floridana – small bushy yew of northern Florida having spreading branches and very narrow leaves
Austrotaxus spicata, New Caledonian yew – large yew native to New Caledonia; cultivated in eastern Australia and New Zealand and Hawaii
Pseudotaxus chienii, white-berry yew – yew of southeastern China, differing from the Old World yew in having white berries
conifer, coniferous tree – any gymnospermous tree or shrub bearing cones
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is very good on the yew.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/popular/yew/growing-guide
It says:
Once yew plants have settled in, they are general healthy and trouble free when grown in suitable conditions. The foliage, seeds and wood are also extremely toxic, so few pests feed on yew.
And
Yew toxicity
All parts of yew (except the fruits) are highly poisonous, so take care when positioning plants. Keep them out of reach of grazing animals, and supervise young children carefully. While the fruits themselves aren’t poisonous, the seed inside is highly toxic. For more advice, see our guide to potentially harmful garden plants.
Here is a young man who died from yew poison apparently.
Ben Hines died after ingesting yew tree poison – 7 February 2014
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-26089688
The below site I found very enlightening, although it talks of a Yew spearhead dated 450,000 years old which is ridiculous.
http://www.eattheweeds.com/yew/
Whilst one might eat the red aril, the soft fruit, I am not sure it is worth the effort. The wood of yew is fine grained and strong and longbows were made of it.
It is worth noting the deadly poison of the yew is taxine.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxus
It is notable this is not far removed from the Greek word τόξον, ‘toxon’, translated ‘bow’ in the book of Revelation and carried by the first horseman.
There is only this one use of the word in Greek in the New Testament.
The trees can grow to considerable age and at Kingley Vale to the north-west of Chichester there is a sizeable wood, one of the biggest in Europe apparently.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingley_Vale_National_Nature_Reserve
My family went there quite often when I was a child. We would climb up through the yew woods, which was quite tricky as it is steep and the underlying chalk is part exposed. It is slippery when damp. The yew kills everything under its shade.
But the view at the top is wonderful and you can see the Isle of Wight (just visible to the right of the picture below.
I found this link on a very old yew at Wraysbury, Berkshire to the south east of Windsor.
There you will find the Ankerwycke Yew which could be more than 2,000 years old. I note with amusement that anagramming Ankerwycke comes up with ‘knacker yew’!!!
So perhaps this is why the nuns suffered there!
But you will find many yews in churchyards across the British Isles. The article link above says:
There are many theories as to why they grow mainly in churchyards, and these are linked also to pre-Christian pagan practices. But in Staffordshire, we were taught they were in the churchyards simply because it was not safe to grow them anywhere else. Cows, sheep, dogs and horses could and indeed did die from being poisoned by yew.
It is strange to think how a poisonous tree which reminds me of Satan, once Lucifer, can exist in a place set apart for the worship of God. Not that you can’t worship Him only there but such places were designed for people to congregate and a place of sanctuary.
Of course, there are people like yews who can look good on the outside, inviting with enticing warm words, but are deadly poison underneath. These include politicians of course and the man or woman in the smart suit who will gladly sell you pharmaceuticals.
They even make drugs from the yew. I see St John’s College, Cambridge is lending a hand.
https://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/index.php/yew-cuttings-become-cancer-fighting-drugs
There are two chemotherapy drugs, docetaxel and paclitaxel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Docetaxel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paclitaxel
They are neuro-toxic and as a consequence have common side effects. This is not a post about cancer and drugs but I note costs per cycle up to £1,000 and this was at least nearly 15 years ago now.
The whole thing is a financial scam like pharmaceuticals are in general.
Back to yews. The Woodland Trust has some interesting information on Irish yews. Copy into browser to make work.
And here is some more information about church yard yews and some interesting examples.
Here is Painswick in Gloucestershire to which I have been.
Summary and final thoughts
The yew tree is very ancient but very poisonous. Its poison, taxine, reminds me of taxes. Are taxes poisonous I wonder? They certainly can be misspent and are currently being used to pay for poisonous vaccines to harm and kill us.
The aril is edible. However an anagram of aril is ‘liar’. Why does this not surprise me. The bright red fruits looks attractive, apparently tastes good, but the end is deadly if one eats the seed, let alone any other part of it.
The same is true of Satan, once Lucifer, the serpent of the Garden of Eden and yes, the Yew Tree, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
And this is why the seed of Satan, his lies, are so harmful. They poison everything and lead to death.
He was a liar and a murderer from the beginning.
All this may put you off yew trees and hardly surprising. And beware there are yews that say they are yews but are not, but are of the synagogue of Satan!
Anyway, until next time, be seeing yew (sic)!
P.S. This may be of interest
My posts on Lucifer.
Lily the Pink or Luci the Stink?
On pharmaceuticals and what’s in them.
Odd post, but I love it!
Some 50 years ago, my brother and I started a lawncare and landscaping company...
We always recommended Japanese yews, hardy and can handle cold weather and heavy snow in Ontario, Canada.
I have 2 in the backyard, and trim once a year, and let them grow.