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Red berries on pine trees


Evergreen Yew Trees With Red Berries | Home Guides

By Nathalie Alonso Updated September 20, 2021

If you come across an evergreen shrub with red berries, it is likely a yew (Taxus spp.). While they are considered conifers, yew trees and shrubs don't produce typical cones but rather modified versions of cones that look more like small red fruit. Yew trees are winter hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 to 10, though some species are more cold tolerant than others. All parts of the yew tree are highly poisonous to people and animals if ingested.

Evergreens With Red Berries

Yew trees can range in height from 3 to 120 feet, according to the American Conifer Society. These trees are usually dioecious, which means that some individuals are male, and others are female. A distinctive feature of yew trees is their red-toned bark. Popular ornamental species include the English yew (Taxus baccata, zones 6-7), which occurs naturally in parts of Europe, Asia and northern Africa. Species English yews are rarely available commercially and are more commonly sold as hybrids and cultivars, according to the Missouri Botanical Garden.

Another popular species in the Taxus genus is the Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata, zones 4-7), which is native to Asia. Per the American Conifer Society, the Japanese yew is one of the hardiest members of the genus and among the easiest to cultivate. Meanwhile, the endangered Florida yew (Taxus floridata, zones 8-10), one of the shorter yew species with a height of approximately 18 feet, is less tolerant of winter conditions.

Growing Yew Trees

Under the right conditions, yew trees are capable of living for hundreds and even thousands of years in some cases. Most species of yew trees can tolerate full shade, which means four hours of sunlight or less a day, though some cultivars are the exception to this rule. For example, according to the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Bright Gold Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata 'Bright Gold') requires full morning sun and afternoon shade in order to maintain its signature yellow color.

The soil needs of yews vary slightly by species. The English yew tree can grow in many different types of soil, which is also true of other species. Meanwhile, the Florida yew has a preference for a slightly acidic pH, says the Missouri Botanical Garden. These evergreens with red berries need moisture but do not do well in poorly drained soils, which can result in root rot. Overwatering can also cause the foliage to turn yellow and eventually brown.

Caring for Yew Trees

One of the attractive qualities of yew trees is how well they respond to severe pruning, which is why these evergreen bushes with red berries make great hedges. Early spring when new growth has yet to develop is considered the best time of the year to prune yew trees. The University of Missouri Integrated Pest Management program advises against pruning in the summer because doing so can stimulate new growth that will not have a chance to harden in time to survive the winter. Even without pruning, in exposed sites, browning can occur during the winter.

Virtually all parts of yews contain extremely toxic alkaloids with the exception of the flesh of the fruit, which is sweet and edible. The seeds inside the fruit, however, are poisonous. Therefore, these trees should be planted with caution around children, pets and livestock. Birds eat the fruit of the yew tree and disperse the seeds.

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Writer Bio

Since beginning her career as a professional journalist in 2007, Nathalie Alonso has covered a myriad of topics, including arts, culture and travel, for newspapers and magazines in New York City. She holds a B.A. in American Studies from Columbia University and lives in Queens with her two cats.

Garden Guides | Types of Evergreen Trees With Red Berries

By: Stephany Elsworth

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21 July, 2017

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Evergreens are trees that keep their leaves year-round. They were revered by people in pre-Christian Europe, who decorated their homes with evergreen boughs to celebrate the winter solstice. Evergreens are still widely used in holiday decorating; their dark-green leaves and bright-red berries are synonymous with Christmas in many societies. Evergreen trees are also attractive additions to gardens and landscaping.

Yew

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The yew tree, or Taxus baccata, is native to North Africa and Europe. These are densely branched evergreen trees with dark-green needle-like leaves, reddish-brown bark and red berries. Yew trees grow to be approximately 30 to 50 feet tall with a 20-foot spread. Yew trees do not do well in extreme heat, cold or wind. They prefer well-drained moist soil with either full sun or partial shade. They are attractive as hedges, mass plantings or ornamental trees, among other landscaping uses.

Toyon

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Toyon, or Heteromeles arbutifolia, is also known as the California holly, California Christmasberry and Christmasberry. These small evergreen trees or shrubs can grow as tall as 15 or 20 feet, but they usually grow to be between 6 and 8 feet tall with a 4-foot to 5-foot spread. Toyon trees are popular during the Christmas holidays because of their dark-green leaves and bright-red berries. They prefer dry, well-drained soil of poor quality and can grow in either sun or shade. Toyons are drought-tolerant and adaptable to a variety of different growing conditions.

English Holly

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English hollies are native to Europe, but they were introduced into the United States for decorative purposes. These slow-growing shrubs or small trees can grow as tall as 50 feet under the right growing conditions, but they usually grow to be between 15 feet and 30 feet tall. They have thick, waxy dark-green leaves with spines along the edges. They produce small white flowers in early to midsummer. The flowers are replaced by berries that ripen to a bright red by late fall. Only female trees produce berries, however, so plant male and female trees together if you want berries. English holly grows in full to partial sun and is tolerant of nearly any type of soil or moisture level.

American Holly

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American hollies are native to the United States and occur naturally in the southeastern portion of the country. They grow to be as tall as 50 feet. They have stiff, oval-shaped dark-green leaves, light-gray bark, a pyramid or Christmas tree–shaped form and bright-red berries. They prefer well-drained acidic soil and full sun or partial shade. American hollies are drought-resistant and require no pruning to maintain their shape. Plant American hollies in small groups or as specimen trees. Plant male and female trees together to get berries.

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Christmas tree with red berries | The Day newspaper

This species of yew is listed in the Red Data Book of Ukraine

February 20, 5:39 pm

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Only one type of yew grows in Ukraine - yew berry. The tree really resembles a Christmas tree, and even with berries! In the nature of our country, it is quite rare, most often found on the slopes of the mountains of the Carpathians, the Carpathians and the Crimea, but as an ornamental planting - throughout the territory.

In general, the genus of yews includes eight species that are distributed in Europe, East Asia, North America and North Africa. In Europe, yew is often found in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Scotland, Spain, Portugal, Greece, occasionally along the Baltic coast.

Compared to the Slovak and Romanian Carpathians in the Ukrainian Carpathians, yew is much less common. They are protected in the Carpathian Biosphere Reserve, Crimean and Yalta Nature Reserves, a number of reserves, in particular, Knyazhvir in Ivano-Frankivsk region, in the tracts of Bolshaya Ugolka and Malaya Ugolka in Transcarpathia.

By the way, Knyazhdvir is considered one of the largest yew berry reserves in Europe, it is here that its natural renewal takes place. The first mention of a large number of yew trees growing in Knyazhdvor was recorded in Vladislav Spausta's study "Yew", which was published in Lviv as early as 1883. Then scientists attributed this tract to the natural-reserved objects. During the First World War, many trees were cut down for the needs of the army. Under 1932 years the array was gradually restored.

Individual yew trees, given their rarity, often also have the status of natural landmarks and are protected.

THE YEW WAS DESTROYED BECAUSE OF STRENGTH AND BACTERICIDAL PROPERTIES

In ancient times, the berry yew occupied large territories, and man mercilessly exploited the tree because of its strong wood, until it was destroyed, - says biologist Maria SAVCHUK. - The tree has strong bactericidal properties - it even kills microorganisms that are in the air. The local people believed that a house in which at least the beams were made of yew was reliably protected from pathogenic infections and would protect its inhabitants during epidemics. Ritual objects were also made of wood - crosses, monstrances, boxes for relics.

In addition, yew wood has a beautiful texture, polishes well, and is resistant to decay. It was considered the best material for the construction of ships, high-quality bows and arrows, because yew wood, in addition to strength, has high elasticity.

The wood, bark and leaves of the yew tree contain the substance taxine and are therefore poisonous to humans and many animals, horses and livestock. Although foresters have noticed that hares and deer eat yew without harm to their own health.

An old belief claimed that a person could be poisoned by serving him wine in a goblet made of yew. In particular, the historian Pliny the Elder writes about such cases in his Natural History. Modern pharmacologists consider this absolutely probable.

Ancient Romans called yew the royal tree. They decorated the palaces of kings and emperors, made boxes for jewelry and perfumes, royal thrones and a bed for the princes of Kievan Rus, - recalled in historical sources.

In the Carpathians, yew was worth its weight in gold. In princely times, local peasants paid tribute to the boyars with valuable timber, and later, in the 18th - 18th centuries, to the Austrian Caesar.

Memories of ancient yew forests, common in the Carpathians and the Carpathians, are also reflected in toponymy. Probably everyone has heard about the Tisza River and the city of Tysmenitsa, if they have not seen it with their own eyes.

Birds also contribute to the spread of this already rare tree. The fruit of the yew is called the cone berry, its flesh is non-poisonous and sweet. When the birds swallow the berry, the poisonous seed comes out and enters the soil.

IN OLD TIMES THE YES WERE CONSIDERED A SYMBOL OF LONGING AND SORRY

Among the Slavs, the yew was considered a tree of death, a symbol of longing and sadness, says the Encyclopedia of Slavic Culture, Literature and Mythology. In particular, in the Tale of Igor's Campaign, the yew is recalled in a dream by the Grand Duke Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich: on the night of the death of Igor's army, he sees that he is dressed in a black outfit on a yew bed and blue wine is poured, mixed with grief.

The ancient Romans dedicated yew to the gods of the underworld, and tree branches were attributes of funeral rites, yew trees were also planted in cemeteries.

Egyptian pharaohs were also buried in yew sarcophagi. The yew received such symbolism, obviously, due to its bactericidal properties, which people have known about since ancient times. And during excavations of ancient Egyptian pyramids, archaeologists found sculptural portraits of pharaohs and their wives made of yew.

The word "yew" in many Slavic languages ​​sounds the same or similar. On the one hand, it is close to the Latin "taxus" - a spear, the ancient Romans made spears, arrows and bows from yew wood. From the other - close to the Greek "toxicos" - poisonous, because the needles, bark, wood of the tree are still poisonous.

Yew is also called “zelenitsa” - for its thick emerald crown, “negniy-tree” - for strong wood that does not rot easily both in air and in water, “mahogany” - for the peculiar color of wood both before and and after processing, the "royal tree" - for a luxurious crown and pale red wood.

THE TREE DECORATES PARKS AND IS USED IN MEDICINE

Due to its distinctive decorative effect, especially during fruiting, the yew has long been used as a park plant. According to landscape designers, these trees lend themselves remarkably to cutting, shaping and sanitary pruning, and keep their shape for a long time.

That is why they were often used to build labyrinths in French gardens (large yew lattices and bosquets are still preserved in Versailles). The ancient Romans used the berry yew to create buildings and figures of fantastic animals and people from clipped greenery. Since the Renaissance, yew has remained a beautiful topiary material, especially when you need to create whimsical garden compositions, high walls, figures or unique living fences from green plants.

Even in Ibn Sina's treatise "The Canon of Medicine", written in the 11th century, the berry yew is described as a remedy that is used in the treatment of heart diseases. It has been used since ancient times by classical homeopathy. And in Indian medicine, medicinal decoctions, juices, syrups and jellies are made from yew branches and leaves, which help with many diseases.

There is evidence in the literature that since the nineties of the last century, yew tree alkaloids have been used both for research purposes and for the manufacture of antitumor agents that are used in chemotherapy of various forms of cancer.

Newspaper issue #:

#32-33, (2020)

Section

At the end of the “Day”

NEITHER FLOWERS NOR FRUITS | Science and life

Science and life // Illustrations

Many coniferous cones hang down in clusters. But among the conifers there are those in which the cones, like candles, look up. In the picture above - a pseudo-hemlock cone, below - a fir cone.

Thuja and cypress are often confused. The easiest way to distinguish these two plants is by their buds. In thuja, the cones are oblong, with slightly bent tips, while in the cypress they are small, rounded, with spines in the center of the scales. In the picture - a cypress branch with a cone.

Quite large light brown cones (up to 13 cm long) in Siberian pine, better known as Siberian cedar or Siberian pine.

Juniper produces juicy, pea-sized cones instead of cones.

The giant sequoia tree has unusually small cones, less than 2.5 cm in diameter. They grow only at the tips of the branches.

Science and life // Illustrations

Norway spruce.

The male cones of Scots pine resemble small, light yellow peas gathered into candles.

The female cones of the Eldar pine are very elegant.

Tiny cones, barely visible to the naked eye, turn into adult woody cones. In the photo - cones of pines: Himalayan Weymouth (1), Pinia (2), Sabina (3), Roxburgh (4), Pitsunda (5), Black (6), Weymouth (7).

Pinus pine, also known as longevity, grows in the southwestern United States.

Entrance to Miur Forest National Park (California, USA). Pictured is an evergreen sequoia.

In terms of life expectancy, giant sequoias are second only to bristlecone pines - they can live up to 4000 years.

Spruce cones that we usually see in autumn: prickly silver spruce (1), Canadian spruce (2), Serbian spruce (3), common spruce (4).

Almost all conifers produce cones, but their size and shape vary greatly. In the photo - cones: European larch (1), giant sequoiadendron (2), Meizens pseudo-hemlock (3), evergreen cypress (4), evergreen sequoia (5), thuja western (6).

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Most of us imagine coniferous plants as something evergreen, more or less thorny and always with cones. Oddly enough, none of these signs are universal for them. After all, among conifers there are deciduous trees, such as larch, and there are those that shed all the green branches for the winter, such as taxodium, or, in other words, swamp cypress. Not at all prickly fir and yew. Thuja and cypress do not have "traditional" needles at all. Instead of cones, they form juicy fruits - cone berries, juniper and yew. And yet, almost all conifers form cones.

There are male and female cones. Male cones are the same in most conifers. These are small spikelets, most often yellow or red, appearing on young shoots. They are located one at a time at the base of individual needles or form long ears of several dozen individual spikelets. Mature spikelets open, throwing out a huge amount of pollen, which is carried by the wind. In order to keep pollen grains longer in the air, they often have outgrowths of the shells. Pine has two large air sacs on each pollen grain, which allow grains to fly tens of kilometers. If it rains while the pine tree is in bloom, the pollen settles to the ground and forms a wide yellowish-gray border around the edges of the puddles. You can see it in the puddles even in the center of Moscow, many kilometers from the nearest pine forests.

The shells of pollen grains are very stable in the external environment, so pollen can persist in the soil for an extremely long time. Thus, pine pollen was found even in the sediments of the Jurassic period, and the remains of plants of the pine family were found in layers dating back 300 million years.

Immediately after the pollen is shed, the male cones fall off.

Young female cones are usually small, their scales are soft, sometimes brightly colored. So, in Canadian spruce they are carmine-pink, and in different types of larches - from whitish-pink to purple-violet. In pines, cones are most often green or brownish. All of them need coloring not to attract insects, but to better absorb heat, which is very important for plants in a harsh climate.

So what is a bump? It is rather complicated. The cone has an axis on which two types of scales are arranged in a spiral: covering and seed. The scales can be both thin and leathery - in spruces, larches, and thick, woody - in pines and cypresses. Scales always grow in pairs: seed under cover.

In some species, the covering scales are clearly visible and have large denticles. Sometimes the cover scales develop incorrectly, and almost normal needles grow in their place. The most noticeable covering scales are in the Meisens pseudo-hemlock and firs. In branched fir, these scales, sticking out in all directions, are almost equal in length to the diameter of the cone. Because of this appearance, the bump becomes like a disheveled porcupine.

At the base of the seed scales are ovules, from which seeds grow after pollination. The ovules lie open, there are no devices to protect them from adverse conditions, which is why conifers are classified as gymnosperms.

For a long time, botanists could not determine how the cones formed. It turned out that the cones are former branches, the covering scales are former leaves, and the seed scales are modified twigs. In all flowering plants, petals and other parts of the flower are formed only by changed leaves. So the cones can in no way be considered either flowers or fruits.

The American Cowler pine has large "horns" on the scales of its cones. In fir, the covering and seed scales grow together, but only at the base, while in pine cones these scales grow together completely and only a thickened end, called the apex, reminds of the covering scales. By the way, it is the presence of an apex that distinguishes a pine cone from a spruce cone. In some pines, such as the Bunge pine, the apex is decorated with a sharp needle.

The number of scales in different types of cones is different. There can be from several dozen of them - especially in large cones of pines, fir and cedars - up to several pieces - in edible pine or hemlock. So, in thuja, cones have only 5-7 scales and do not reach even a centimeter in size. Large-fruited cypress has very few scales (from 4 to 6), although its cone is the size of a pine cone. Interestingly, the cypress has not two ovules on the seed scale, like most conifers, but up to 15, the same number of seeds.

In pines, larches, spruces and hemlock, the scales of mature cones shrink in wet weather, protecting the seeds from dampness; in dry weather, they rise up, and the seeds fly out of the cones down. That is why the cones of these trees droop after pollination. But the cones of cypress and sequoia, once opened, no longer shrink. In firs, real cedars and araucaria, mature cones crumble into separate scales. Together with the seeds, they scatter around the tree, leaving only axial rods on the branches. In the Atlas cedar, only the smallest scales at the tip remain from the cone, forming a beautiful “rose”.

In many species of spruce, fir, after the seeds ripen, the cones fall off within a year. And the pines are not in a hurry at all. Only the process of fertilization lasts for 15 months, and the seeds after pollination ripen only in the fall of the next year. In some species of pines, cones with ripe seeds do not open for several years.

Cones of real cedars ripen for a long time, usually they need 3-4 years. Quite large and very strong cones of Banks pine open only after 5-6 years, and after the seeds have emerged, they remain empty on the branches. During forest fires, when a tree burns down, these cones are only slightly charred and crack, releasing the entire long-term supply of seeds. They quickly sprout on light and ash-fertilized burnt areas.

The cones of our firs and pines usually begin to crack in early March. At this time in the forest in dry sunny weather, you can often see how the seeds fall. In most conifers, they have membranous wings that allow them to stay in the air and be carried by the wind, rotating like propellers.

But not all seeds are winged. Thus, in the pine pine, the seeds that we usually call pine nuts are too heavy to fly. The seeds of the Italian pine pine are even larger, while those of the araucaria reach a length of 5 centimeters. Such seeds are carried by small animals and birds, which store them for the winter.

Conifers are not only the oldest trees on our planet, but also one of the largest. Quite often, evergreen sequoias growing in California are above 100 meters. The largest species, the giant sequoiadendron, reaches 132 meters in height and is second only to eucalyptus, whose maximum height is 152 meters.

The thickness of coniferous trees is also striking, they are second only to baobabs. So, the thickest of conifers - Mexican taxodium, or mammoth tree, can reach a thickness of 16 meters. It grows in damp places, often standing right in the water, for which it is called swamp cypress. The maximum thickness of another tree - sequoiadendron - is 12 meters. Some of its specimens reach the age of more than 3000 years, and according to some scientists, even 4000 years. But all records of longevity are broken by pine, which is called so - durable. In the USA, in the state of Eastern Nevada, they found a specimen of pine, whose age is 4900 years! Already at the time of the construction of the pyramid of Cheops, it was a tree of respectable age - more than 200 years.

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