Day 15 – Yew

Not a female sheep today but an evergreen shrub/tree. One of the UK’s only native conifer species (the other being the Scot’s Pine) it is a species steeped in history. So without further ado…

What: Yew Taxus baccata L.

When: 15th January 2020

Where: Poynton Pool, Cheshire, UK

Who saw it: Me

How did I record it? On the iRecord app.

Is it bigger than a blackbird? Yes, it’s a shrub, and blackbirds eat the berries.

What is it? A shrubby evergreen conifer native to the UK, most of the rest of Europe and the western bit of Asia. The red berries, seen in autumn, are highly toxic to humans and cattle but are a prized food item for birds, thrushes in particular. In Britain old and ancient plants they are primarily associated with churchyards, many of which are as old or older than the church (many churches in Britain are ancient in their own right). There doesn’t seem a consensus as to why the association with churchyards, possibly it comes from folklore where Yews are said to ward off evil spirits, or even from pre-Christian pagan sites, some of which were subsequently built on with churches.

A fact I have learned about this species: I knew this one beforehand but hey… Yew wood was used to make English longbows, one of the fiercest weapons of the medieval era. Another fact is that (possibly) the oldest Yew in the UK is estimated to be between 2,000 and 3,000 years old and resides in a churchyard in Perthshire, Scotland. (Ref:https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2018/01/ancient-yew-trees/)

Is it charismatic? Yes. There is so much history and lore associated with this species it can’t be anything but. Chances are that if you are seeing an ancient yew than you are seeing something that will have been living on this planet when historic events have taken place; Viking Invasion, Norman Invasion, Magna Carta (if it’s truly ancient for the last 3!), the age of Shakespeare, English Civil War, American Independence and many more.