Taxus baccata

Common yew, English yew or Irish yew is in the yew or Taxaceae family and is native to central and southern Europe, northwest Africa, northern Iran and southwest Asia. It is a small to medium-sized tree growing about 20 m tall; it can reach over 600 years old.

• Leaves are flat , dark green above, paler below, apex pointed but not sharp, 1-4 cm long and 2–3 mm wide, arranged spirally on the stem but with bases twisted to appear in 2 flat rows on either side of the stem, except on erect leading shoots where the spiral arrangement is more obvious.
• Species is dioecious, bearing male and female flowers on different plants; male cones are small, round, and yellow, 3–6 mm in diameter, on the undersides of the leaves, shedding their pollen in early spring; female flowers are solitary.
• Seed cone develops into a soft, bright red berry-like structure called an aril, circular and 8–15 mm across, open at the end and containing 1 seed.
• Bark is thin, reddish brown and scaly.