The yew is rightly considered a dangerous garden tree. It contains the toxin taxine, which can even be fatal if ingested. However, simply cutting the yew is not dangerous if you take a few protective measures.

Yews are best cut with gloves

Can You Prune a Yew Tree Safely?

There is only a risk of poisoning from yew if you eat parts of the yew plant. The poison is in the stem, needles and pits of the fruit. The pulp itself is edible and birds like to eat it.

Cutting the yew is therefore not dangerous. However, you should still take a few precautions when setting out to rejuvenate or shape the yew tree.

The sap can cause inflammation

When cutting the yew, the sap escapes. If it gets on bare skin, it can cause serious inflammation. There are also gardeners who tell of skin irritations on their faces because they got needles from the yew tree on their sensitive facial skin while cutting.

While these injuries are not life-threatening, they are of course very uncomfortable. They can be avoided by taking appropriate precautions.

Precautions when cutting a yew tree

  • Wear gloves!
  • Protect face from needles
  • wear long-sleeved clothing
  • Do not leave cuttings unattended

Don't leave the clippings in the garden, especially if you have pets who may gnaw on the branches. There is also a high risk of poisoning for animals if they eat parts of the yew tree.

What to do with the remains of the yew tree?

Even if the yew is so poisonous, you can safely put it on the compost. The poison is broken down by the bacteria. When the yew rots, the poison is gone too. So you can safely use the compost for vegetable beds.

Compost only healthy clippings. Shred the leftover yew before composting. Otherwise, the decomposition process takes a very long time. Mix the yew with other compost components to create a higher quality humus.

Cover the yew remains on the compost well so that no animals can tamper with them.

The best time to cut the yew

You can cut yews all year round without even severely pruning the yew becoming dangerous. It easily withstands pruning and becomes even denser with more frequent pruning.

It is only better to avoid a cut directly in the hot summer. At the cutting points, the needles turn brown under strong sunlight. This is harmless for the yew, but it doesn't look so nice.

tips

Yews tolerate pruning very well. They can be cut into any desired shape without endangering the tree. That is why the yew is one of the most popular topiaries in the garden and in tubs.

Category:

Trees