Yew Taxus baccata

This ancient tree is poisonous but has historically had great sacred significance, although perhaps these two factors are linked. What is known is that it can live for centuries and is often found in the churchyards of Britain.

The common yew, although native to Britain and sometimes referred to as the English yew, is also found across much of Europe, Asia and even Africa. It certainly has a long association with English culture, not least in the use of its wood for bows.

Yew forests were once widespread in Britain but supplies were soon exhausted for timber and as long ago as the 13th century yew bowstaves were being imported for use in battle. The yew longbow is famous for being the weapon of choice at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415.

While it is generally agreed that the yew lives for a long time, the actual age of individual trees is often impossible to gauge. The traditional method of counting the rings in the trunk of a tree is often not an option as many older specimens have hollowed out trunks. This is caused by a fungus that turns the inside of the tree into a pulpy, soil-like mass of rotten wood. (Interestingly, this seems to have no ill effect on the health of the tree as a whole.) However, as the girth of some yew trunks has been known to reach a huge 4m (13ft), even the most conservative estimation of around 2,000 years would mean that it is the longest living tree in Europe.

The yew tree is consistently found in churchyards around Britain. As many of these specimens are reputedly thousands of years old, it is suggested that they yew had some sacred significance even before Christianity reached British shores. Without any compelling documentary evidence, it remains mere speculation, if extraordinarily coincidental. Its presence there however often earns it the nickname 'tree of the dead'.