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Taxus × media

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Hybrid plant species

Taxus × media
Two immature Taxus media var. hicksii yews planted in central Indiana, United States of America. Although T. media are slow-growing, the specimen on the right may require pruning within 2–3 years in order to avoid blocking the nearby sidewalk.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Cupressales
Family: Taxaceae
Genus: Taxus
Species: T. × media
Binomial name
Taxus × media
Rehder

Taxus × media, also referred to as the Hybrid yew, Anglo-Japanese yew, or Anglojap yew is a conifer (more specifically, a yew) created by the hybridization of English yew Taxus baccata and Japanese yew Taxus cuspidata. This hybridization is thought to have been performed by the Massachusetts-based horticulturalist T.D. Hatfield in the early 1900s.

Taxus × media is grown in a large number of shrubby, often wide-spreading, cultivars under a variety of names.

Description

Like most yew species, T. × media prefers well-drained and well-watered soils, but has some degree of drought tolerance and in fact may die in conditions of excessive precipitation if the soil beneath the plant is not sufficiently well-drained.

Taxus × media is among the smallest extant species in the genus Taxus and (depending upon cultivar) may not even grow to the size of what one would consider a typical tree. Immature shrubs are very small and achieve (over the time span of ten to twenty years) heights of at most 20 ft (6.1 m) and diameters of at most 12 ft (3.7 m), depending on the cultivar. Furthermore, T. × media is known to grow rather slowly and is not injured by frequent pruning, making this hybrid very desirable as a hedge in low-maintenance landscaping and also a good candidate for bonsai.

Toxicity

Taxus × media also shares with its fellow yew trees a high level of taxine in its branches, needles, and seeds. Taxine is toxic to the mammalian heart.

Varieties (cultivars)

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (January 2025)
Variety Alternate names Image Sex Developed by Notes
Beanpole "Bean pole" Female Known for growing tall and skinny.

It is slow growing, taking up to 20 years to reach its full size of about 8-10 ft (2.4 - 3.0 m) tall and 1-2 ft (30 - 61 cm) wide.

Brownii "Brown's yew" Male Grows wide and round.

Capable of growing up to 10 ft (3.0 m) high and 12 ft (3.7 m) in diameter.

Densiformis Female Low and wide spreading. It can reach a diameter exceeding 10 ft (3.0 m); nonetheless, this cultivar does not grow much past 5 ft (1.5 m) in height.
Hicksii "Hick's yew"

"Hicks yew"

Both Henry Hicks at Hicks Nurseries in Long Island, New York Tallest known variety of T. × media, capable of reaching a height close to 20 ft (6.1 m).
Kelseyi "Kelsey yew" Female Grows large and tall with a height of 15 ft (4.6 m) at maturity, and a spread of 10 ft (3.0 m). It is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a low canopy about 1 foot from the ground.
Sunburst Primarily distinguished by its golden-yellow shoots in the spring. It is wide growing, known to reach about 7 ft high and 10 ft in diameter at maturity.
Tauntonii "Taunton's yew"

"Taunton yew"

Grows relatively short and wide, reaching up to 4 ft tall and 6 ft in diameter at maturity.

References

  1. "Anglo-Japanese yew". The Morton Arboretum. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
  2. ^ "Taxus × media | Landscape Plants | Oregon State University". landscapeplants.oregonstate.edu. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  3. ^ "Plant Database". plantdatabase.uconn.edu.
  4. Wilson, C. R.; Sauer, J.; Hooser, S. B. (2001). "Taxines: A review of the mechanism and toxicity of yew (Taxus spp.) alkaloids". Toxicon. 39 (2–3): 175–85. doi:10.1016/s0041-0101(00)00146-x. PMID 10978734.
  5. "Beanpole Yew - Taxus media 'Beanpole' - PNW Plants". www.pnwplants.wsu.edu. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  6. "Taxus × media 'Brownii' - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
  7. "Taxus × media 'Densiformis' - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
  8. "Taxus × media 'Hicksii' - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  9. "Taxus × media 'Hicksii' | Landscape Plants | Oregon State University". landscapeplants.oregonstate.edu. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  10. "Kelsey Yew (Taxus x media 'Kelseyi')". Thies Farm. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  11. "Sunburst Yew (Taxus x media 'Sunburst') at Minor's Garden Center". Minor's Garden Center Plant Finder. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  12. "Taxus × media 'Tautonii' | Landscape Plants | Oregon State University". landscapeplants.oregonstate.edu. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
Taxon identifiers
Taxus ×media
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