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YEW, ASIAN

Taxus celebica (Chinese yew)
Taxus chinensis (Chinese yew)
Taxus chinenseis var mairei (Taiwan yew)
Taxus cuspidata (Japanese yew)
Taxus sumatrana (Chinese yew)
Taxus wallichiana (mountain yew [in the philippines])

Tasux spp. of the family Taxaceae. Yew is a good example of a softwood that is harder than some hardwoods. For example, Pacific yew has a Janka hardness of 1600 whereas Scarlet oak is 1400 and some beeches are under 600.

my samples: NOTE: these pics were all taken in very bright incandescent lighting ("soft white" at 2700K) colors will vary under other lighting conditions

both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew listed botanically only as Taxus spp.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew / Taxus spp. --- HUGE enlargements are present


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew / Taxus spp. --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew / Taxus spp. --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew / Taxus cuspidata --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by Mark Peet whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese plum yew / Cephalotaxus harringtonii --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was contributed to the site by Mark Peet whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site. NOTE: from The American Conifer Society:

The Japanese plum yew was first considered to be a yew when it was partially described by Thomas Andrew Knight in 1839 and as such was named Taxus harringtonii. It was reclassified by Philipp Franz von Siebold and Joseph Gerhard Zuccarini in 1846 with a new specific name, Cephalotaxus drupacea. Some botanists consider C. koreana and C. sinensis to be synonymous with C. harringtonii.[6] Although normally found under the name Cephalotaxus harringtonia, that name violates the grammar rules of Botanical Latin and in 2012 was corrected to Cephalotaxus harringtonii. However, this opinion is still not universally accepted by taxonomists and therefore it is acceptable to use Cephalotaxus harringtonia until a definitive position has been agreed.


end grain and HIGH GRIT END GRAIN CLOSEUP of the piece directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew "branch burl" / Taxus cuspidata --- "branch burl" in this case does not mean a burl that was on a branch, it means that this is not actually a burl at all but rather a burl-LOOKING piece where several small brances came into the trunk, giving the swirly burl-like appearance. I also note that the purple in these pics is much more vibrant in the pics than it is in the wood itself and I have seen this effect on other pices of yew. HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Japanese yew "branch burl" / Taxus cuspidata --- "branch burl" in this case does not mean a burl that was on a branch, it means that this is not actually a burl at all but rather a burl-LOOKING piece where several small brances came into the trunk, giving the swirly burl-like appearance. I also note that the purple in these pics is much more vibrant in the pics than it is in the wood itself and I have seen this effect on other pices of yew. HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


both sides of a sample plank of Asian yew / Taxus wallichiana --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by Mark Peet whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and HIGH GRIT END GRAIN CLOSEUP of the piece directly above

web pics:

plank labeled Japanese yew / Taxus cuspidata


plank labeled Taiwan yew / Taxus mariei, which is an incorrect botanical name. It should be "Taxus chinenseis var mairei", NOT Taxus mairei


Japanese yew / ichii / Taxus cuspidata smartphone holder


Japanese yew smartphone holder


turned boxes labeled Japanese yew