25 
The Garden Magazine , March, 1921 
As already stated, my experience with raising Yews 
from seed dates from the time T. baccata Dovastoni 
fruited. Plants of the fastigiate Irish Yew, the typi- 
cal English Yew and both forms of Japanese cuspi- 
data were growing and fruiting near by — near enough 
to be crossed with each other. I have concluded 
that this is what happened, and that it accounts for 
much of the variation among our seedlings. 
When the seedlings raised from the various types 
of Yew were large enough, they were planted on an 
during the last eighteen years. I 
am really led to believe (what 
some botanists claim) that all Yews 
are but forms of one, which we will 
call T. baccata. Generally the T. 
baccata varieties take* on a frond- 
like growth in the arrangement of 
the leaves, that is, two-ranked with 
the leaves straight, or nearly so. In 
the typical T. cuspidata there is 
less of the frond-like growth; the 
leaves, at first two-ranked, curve 
upward giving the twigs a rounded 
form. But many seedlings of T. 
baccata and T. cuspidata show very 
little difference in growth, and gen- 
eral habit, and no botanical terms 
can define them. They have become 
so mixed by growing and fruiting 
together, that the seedlings have, 
except in extreme cases, lost their 
identity. The leaves of T. cuspidata 
are by one authority said to be dis- 
tinctly stalked. Seedlings from T. 
baccata vary not at all from this; 
nor do 1 see any marked difference 
in the degree of point, or leaf tip. If 
it is cuspidate in the one it is also 
in the other. What 1 have noticed, 
however, in gathering seeds, is that 
those of T. cuspidata and T. bac- 
cata are pear-shaped, and slightly 
stalked, while those of T. c. brevi- 
folia are stalkless and globular. 
While a minor characteristic, it is 
just as important as the botanically 
given one; and that is not consider- 
able, it seems to me. 
ENGLISH YEW AT WELLESLEY 
Raised from mixed hybrid seed, and 
quite indistinguishable from T. cuspi- 
data type in general appearance. It 
has withstood the severe winters 
IRISH YEW 
One of the extreme forms selected from the hybrid 
seedlings, which curiously enough is so far hardy 
exposed piece of ground so as to 
test them thoroughly. The major- 
ity of the plants of English and 
Irish blood did not prove reliably 
hardy; they went along for ten 
years without injury, but finally 
there came a winter which made 
between the English and Japanese 
types a distinction more decided 
than any botanist could. A big 
majority of the T. baccata varie- 
ties were injured, but probably 
ten per cent, proved as hardy as 
any of the T. cuspidata. The other 
ninety per cent, were sent to Mr. 
T. A. Havemeyer, of Long Island, 
where they enjoy a more salubrious 
climate, and he reports they are 
doing amazingly well. We set great 
store on those that remain with us, 
and among them are some very 
handsome specimens of English and 
Irish Yews. 
T. baccata Dovastoni was with- 
out doubt crossed with the Irish 
Yew. Nearly every plant was per- 
TREE FORM OF JAPANESE YEW 
Known in the trade as Taxus cuspidata capitata 
