Taxus cuspidata
| Taxus cuspidata | |
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| Species: | T. cuspidata
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| Taxus cuspidata | |
Taxus cuspidata (Japanese Yew or Spreading Yew) is a member of the genus Taxus, native to China, Japan,Korea and the extreme southeast of Russia.
It is an evergreen tree or large shrub growing to 10-18 m tall, with a trunk up to 60 cm diameter. The leaves are lanceolate, flat, dark green, 1-3 cm long and 2-3 mm broad, arranged spirally on the stem, but with the leaf bases twisted to align the leaves in two flattish rows either side of the stem except on erect leading shoots where the spiral arrangement is more obvious. The seed cones are highly modified, each cone containing a single seed 4-8 mm long partly surrounded by a modified scale which develops into a soft, bright red berry-like structure called an aril, 8-12 mm long and wide and open at the end. The arils are mature 6-9 months after pollination.
Uses
It is widely grown in eastern Asia and eastern North America as an ornamental plant.
The entire yew bush is toxic enough to kill a horse, save for the fleshy berry surrounding the seed.