Western yew

Leaves

Form

• Needle-like, evergreen
• Remaining on tree for about 8 years
• Flattened, somewhat curved
• Midvein prominent
• Edges rolled under
• Tip sharp, abruptly pointed
• Base tapered to a short slender stalk attached to the forward end of a flat leaf-cushion
• Spirally arranged, often appearing to be 2-ranked or spreading from 3 sides
• No resin ducts

Length

• 13–25 mm

Colour

• Upper surface dark yellowish-green
• Lower surface pale

Buds

Form

• Terminal bud small, rounded, with thin, closely overlapping scales
• Lateral buds similar but smaller
• Bud scales keeled acute, loose

Colour

• Terminal bud green

Twigs

Form

• Slender, flexible, hairless
• Leaf-cushions evident as flat ridges extending a few millimetres below each leaf, separated by incised grooves

Colour

• Green, becoming greenish-brown or reddish-brown

Pollen cones

Form

• Globular, small
• 6–12 scales
• On short stalks from winter buds on the underside of previous year’s twigs
• Pollen cones and seed-bearing structure on separate trees

Colour

• Pollen cone yellow
  

Seed cones (mature)

Form

• A single ovule set on the end of a short scaly stalk
• Wind-pollinated

Colour

• Ovule greenish
  

Structure

• Coming from a lateral winter bud on previous year’s twig

Timing

• Ripens the same autumn

Seeds

Form

• Hard
• Set in a cup-shaped, fleshy aril

Length

• About 8 mm

Colour

• Seed dark blue
• Aril reddish

Seedlings

Form

• 2 short, flat, sharp-pointed cotyledons

Bark

Form

• Thin, with large scales

Colour

• Dark reddish-brown to purplish-brown
• Newly exposed bark dark reddish-purple

Wood

Texture

• Fine-textured, heavy, hard
• Strong, resilient
  
• Decay-resistant

Colour

• Reddish to dark orange
• Sapwood yellow

Morphology

• Annual rings distinct, rays not visible
• No resin ducts
• Even-grained

Uses

• Canoe paddles, tool handles, carved ornaments
• Bark, needles, and twigs produce paclitaxel (Taxol), a potent anti-cancer drug

Size

Height

• Up to 20 m

Tree form

Forest-grown

Crown

• Conical, with spreading, irregular branches
• Flat or slightly drooping branchlets

Habitat

Site

• A scattered tree of the understory of conifer or northern broadleaf forests

Light tolerance

• Very shade-tolerant, but thrives in full sunlight