"M. Nicholson" wrote in message om...
Hello. I am hunting for information regarding Taxus baccata (English
Yew). I wish to plant one in my garden.

How fast do they grow? I've heared that they are slow growers (if
this information is correct, then how many inches per year?), and will
the Australian Climate in which I live (New South Wales South Coast)
affect it's growth rate at all?

Are they heat tolerant? Can they handle drought? Do they have to
have a well-drained soil?

What sort of situation are they used to in England (I'm not close to
the coastline, further inland)? Acidic/Alkaline soil?

I'm sorry to bombard you with questions like this, but I'd really like
the plant I grow to have a good chance of surviving, and any help
would be GREATLY appreciated.

Growth rate depends on conditions - probably 30cm in reasonable conditions, 50 cm for a young plant in ideal conditions
to almost zero in marginal conditions. Remember in the UK this is typically an understory species of woodlands doing
especially well in the milder wetter west and those are the conditions it likes. We have Yews here up to about 12 metres
or a bit more and the same wide (around 200 years old)Some self sown on top of an old wall in full sun have been there
27 years to my knowledge and only about 1 metre x 1 metre. Young plants in the wood reaching 3 metres in 10 years. I
would guess coastal NSW would be about the only place where you might stand any chance of growing them but only if you
could provide adequate water and some attenuation of the full sun. I think I'd prefer to grow some of the Australian
natives instead and think of us poor poms trying to grow 'em in a freezing bog over here ;~))

Rod