Yew Trees: Death, Churchyards, and Helpful Tools

Yew Trees: Death, Churchyards, and Helpful Tools

From Fabulous Folklore with Icy by Icy Sedgwick

March 14, 2026 · 20 min

About this episode

This episode explores the folklore and ecological significance of yew trees, their links to death, and their unique characteristics.

Back in November 2020, I explored the folklore of the yew tree; specifically, the common yew, or English yew (Taxus baccata). Yes, it's a poisonous tree. Yes, it's linked with death. And yes, people like to say they pre-date the churchyards in which we find them. But in the intervening six years, my library of sources has grown, so I wanted to see if there was anything more I could learn about them. They're my favourite tree, and I always love spotting them in parks and cemeteries. There's something deeply restful and reassuring about a yew tree. My fascination with trees within ecosystems has also grown, so I wanted to explore the yew outside of folklore. How and why are these trees so cool and so different from other trees? So let's explore their dendrology, their uses to humans, and yes, their links with death, before we meet some more famous yews in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the blog post with all the images and references here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/yew-trees/ Listen to the earlier yew episode: https://www.icysedgwick.com/yew/ Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/ Become a member of…

Topics covered

  • yew trees
  • folklore
  • dendrology
  • death
  • churchyards

Keywords

  • Taxus baccata
  • poisonous trees
  • cemeteries
  • ecosystems

Mentioned in this episode

Products: free guide to home protection

Books & works: Fabulous Folklore

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