Tree species: Yew

Color: sapwood white, heartwood red to reddish-brown

Hardness: very hard and dense

Characteristics: very hard, dense and durable, yet elastic.

Heartwood formation: yes, the yew is a true heartwood tree

Psychological correspondence: the yew is a tree of extremes, representing death and eternal life. Because of its ability to transport people and animals to the afterlife (since almost all parts of the yew are poisonous), the yew is considered a tree of the dead, leading souls to the light. Its themes are self-healing and rejuvenation, change and transformation, protection and shadow, longevity.

Properties/uses: ideal bow wood (in the past the famous English longbows were made from it), also spears and lances, In outdoor applications (e.g. fence posts) the heartwood is virtually indestructible, turning wood, fine furniture wood, veneers, ornamental objects.

Value/availability: very rare and usually only regional small dimensions, therefore valuable

Cutting time in arboriculture: in summer (from about May to August), after full leaf sprout

Sealing behavior: very good

Pruning and wound closure: according to current guideline ZTV Baumpflege, before branch ring up to (as far as possible) max. 10 cm diameter, no wound closure (as ineffective).

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Sources of the information:

• My own experience/knowledge and documents from my wood economics studies at the Rosenheim University of Applied Sciences.
• Native timber (loose-leaf collection) Authors D. Grosser and W. Teetz. CMA, Bonn-publisher -Holzabsatzfonds-Bonn 1998
• Book Volker Drolshagen/Karin Hoffmann: The Language of Trees (1997)
• Website https://www.everyday-feng-shui.de