• Common name : Common Yew, European Yew
• Scientific name : Taxus baccata
• Family : Taxaceae
• Native land : Western, Central and Southern Europe, North- West Africa, Northern Iran and South-West Asia
Yew is the most popular evergreen tree. It is known as the ‘tree of death’. The tree has spreading branches and slightly drooping branchlets. The bark is reddish brown and flaky, sometimes deeply fissured in very old trees. All parts of an English yew, except the fleshy aril surrounding the seed, contain alkaloids that are poisonous to humans and several other animals. Oil of yew is an intestinal irritant, responsible for colic and diarrhoea symptoms of yew poisoning. Today European yew is widely used in landscaping and ornamental horticulture.
