Canada Yew Taxus canadensis
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- TAKS-us ka-na-DEN-sis
- Description
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American yew is a conifer in the yew family (Taxaceae) found in swampy areas, ravines, stream banks, and lakeshores in Canada and the U.S.A. It ranges in from Manitoba, Minnesota, and Iowa eastward to the coast and south as far as Tennessee and North Carolina. In NC, it is found in the mountains in the northwestern part of the state. The species epithet means "native to Canada."
American yews are straggly shrubs that grow in part shade to shade in moist, cool soil in rich woods, hardwood and conifer forests, swamps, ravines, and banks. The stems that touch the ground will root and colonies can be formed. It rarely grows over 5 feet tall.
Use this shrub to stabilize soils along streams, ponds and bogs or in mass plantings as a ground cover. Deer will browse this shrub.
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: See the factsheet on potential conifer insects to the left.
VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Taxus
- Species:
- canadensis
- Family:
- Taxaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Stem Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Central and eastern North America.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 3 ft. 0 in. - 5 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 6 ft. 0 in. - 8 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Shrub
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Ascending
- Prostrate
- Spreading
- Growth Rate:
- Slow
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Deep shade (Less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Wet
- NC Region:
- Mountains
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 3a, 3b, 4a, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Red/Burgundy
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Summer
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- The seed is borne in a cup-shaped, fleshy structure called an aril, up to 3/8 inch long, maturing to bright red, open at the end and exposing the single seed in mid- to late-summer.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Cream/Tan
- Gold/Yellow
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Description:
- Male and female cones are both about 1/8 inch long, borne singly in the leaf axils usually on different branches of the same plant, occasionally on separate plants. Female cones are smaller, beginning as pointed buds and subtended by a series of small bracts. Male cones are oval-elliptic, the cone scales yellowish, the pollen sacs initially creamy colored, turning tan.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Fragrant
- Leaf Type:
- Needles
- Leaf Shape:
- Linear
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- 3/8- 1-inch dark green needles attached singly in a spiral around the branch but give a flattened appearance as they project laterally only. The undersides are paler with a prominent green midvein and appearing striped.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Red/Burgundy
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Twigs are mostly alternate, hairless, green to yellowish when young, becoming brown to reddish-brown the second year.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Riparian
- Slope/Bank
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Native Garden
- Rain Garden
- Winter Garden
- Design Feature:
- Mass Planting
- Problems:
- Problem for Cats
- Problem for Dogs
- Problem for Horses
