1 50 Yew- Trees of Great Britain and Ireland 



his cowes began to feed upon the Leaves, and two 

 of them within a few hours dyed. A just reward.^ 



In the New Planter s Kalendar it is stated that 

 ' there are many trees in pastures and fences around, 

 and also hedges, which are uniformly browsed by 

 sheep and cattle without doing them any injury 

 whatever. Marshall has seen extensive yew planta- 

 tions into which cattle were admitted without any 

 evil consequences to themselves, though the trees 

 were browsed to the very boughs.' Many instances 

 of horses and cattle having been poisoned by it are 

 related in the Gardeners Chronicle between 1870 

 and 1880. 



By a course of experiments, made by Professor 

 Wiborg 2 of Copenhagen, it was shown that al- 

 though the leaves when eaten alone were particu- 

 larly fatal to horses, when mixed with twice or 

 thrice their quantity of oats, they could be eaten 

 with impunity. Loudon mentions that in the 

 mountainous parts of Hanover and Hesse, the 

 peasants feed their cattle in part with the branches 

 of yew during the winter season, beginning with 

 a small quantity, and gradually increasing the 

 amount. 



Deer, sheep, goats, hares, and rabbits eat yew 

 without harm. Cattle and horses, if not freshly 

 turned out, do not eat sufficient to cause any evil. 



1 Cole, Art of Simpling, etc., 1656. 



2 Selby, Forest Trees, p. 373. 



