Cut yews: How to do it

 Yews are a real exception. After all, cutting conifers is one of those things - you should cut them as little as possible. Yews, on the other hand, are very tolerant of pruning and with these tips can be cut very well as a hedge or even to form a shaped shrub.

yews, botanically called Taxus baccata, are evergreen with dark needles, 

very robust and undemanding. Yews grow equally in sunny and shady 

locations as long as the ground is not soaking wet. The plants belong 

to the conifers and are the only native conifers, which are poisonous 

in almost all parts. Especially poisonous on the yew are the seeds of the berries, 

for horses also needles and bark. 

They are the only conifers with bright red berries and also 

the only ones that tolerate a stronger pruning and even a rejuvenating cut.

Cut yews: The most important facts in brief

If you cut your yew once a year, it will ensure opaque growth. 

For a particularly fine surface, it has proven to be a good idea to 

cut the yew twice a year, even three times if you want to create an 

accurate work of art. The best time to cut yews is between March and September. 

A strong pruning or rejuvenating cut is best done by the beginning of March. 

Yew hedges should be pruned regularly from the second year of standing: 

trim three-quarters of the shoots, or about half for young hedges.

 Yews in the garden: Why cut them?

The trees are not only robust, but because of their fine needles 

they can also be cut into shape - as a hedge or topiary. 

With annual pruning, a yew hedge in the garden becomes absolutely 

opaque over the years, even in winter. With at least two prunings per year, 

figures made of yew get a very nice dense and homogeneous surface 

and then look like sculptures. This also applies to a hedge, 

if it is to get a particularly fine surface, otherwise you cut yew 

hedges only once a year.

When to cut a yew?

A yew that has become too large, damaged or grown out of shape 

can be cut into shape all year round if necessary, except in severe frost. 

Cutting from spring to autumn, or more precisely from March to September, 

has proven to be a good idea. However, generally avoid pruning in strong 

sunlight or heat. A Taxus cut at such a time will get brown needles 

and whole shoot tips of the plant may dry out. If you want to cut the yew more, 

do this ideally before the first shoots in March. 

Then the cuts will heal perfectly and the plant can sprout fresh again 

immediately. Also, no birds will be breeding in the plant. 

Also cut at this time if you value the red berries.

When to cut yew hedges?

If you have planted a yew hedge, do not prune it until the second 

year after planting. Normal hedges in the garden are trimmed once a year 

in June or July. However, only if you have made sure that no bird is breeding 

in the yew. If you want a yew to become even finer after pruning and 

look almost as exact as a wall, prune it twice a year. Once between 

May and June and then again in August or September.

How to cut yew hedges?

Yew hedges are cut in such a way that they resemble 

a large "A" in cross-section and not - as you see again and again - a "V". 

Because only when a hedge tapers at the top after cutting, 

does it get light all around and in winter snow can slide off. 

The flanks of a yew hedge can be cut somewhat steeper than 

those of deciduous hedges, which means that the hedge can be cut narrower. 

Cut back the shoots by three-quarters, or by half for a young hedge.

Topiary with yew

Whether a sphere, cone, spirals, pyramids or animal figures: with a little 

imagination you can cut a yew into real art objects. 

Suitable are young plants or a yew that sprouts again after a rejuvenating cut. 

To make the shape successful, make stencils from wood or cardboard.

The more accurate the figures should be, the more often 

you should cut - calmly three times a year. The best time for 

cutting is between June and mid-August. While you can suspend 

pruning in hedges for a year if necessary, you should do topiary 

pruning every year. Otherwise the accurate shape is quickly compromised.

When is a strong pruning of the yew possible?

Has your yew hedge grown out of shape? No problem! 

Get to the scissors and saw and go - because even strong 

pruning and even a rejuvenating cut can be done by Taxus without grumbling. 

The new shoots that form after tapering can then be cut as desired. 

The best time for a rejuvenation cut is until the beginning of March. 

Then the yew can recover in the months after that and really take off again. 

From March onwards, these cuts are also no longer permitted without further 

ado due to the bird protection ordinance.

After a rejuvenation cut it takes about two to three years until the yew 

is back in shape. Treat the yew to organic long-term fertilizer after 

the cut to support its growth. If the yew is to become dense after pruning, 

shorten the new shoots by a third when they have grown to a good ten centimeters.

Dispose of cut material from a yew tree

Even if the needles and other cuttings of the trees are poisonous 

and a lot of waste is produced after a rejuvenation cut, 

you can still compost it. Plant-own poisons are completely 

decomposed during the rotting process. 

A yew tree contains putrefactive substances and rots only slowly. 

Therefore, you should first chop the branches - and wear gloves 

and long clothes when doing so. 

Mix yew clippings on the compost with fruit and perennial remains.