The University of Tennessee Gardens is adding three young Japanese plum yews ('Duke Gardens') to its plant collection. >>>download photo
	February Gardening Tips
	Wondering what to do with that sunny windowsill? Experts with the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture say often spare, sunny space, like a windowsill, can be perfect for starting seedlings indoors. >>>read the article

by Jeffery K. Webb

Winter weather brings out the best in garden evergreens. While the cold air may keep us inside more often than not, gardening enthusiasts can still enjoy snow-laden, dark green hemlock branches, pale sunlight on the bright blue needles of juniper and spruce, and sober olive green leaves that glisten in the rain.

Among the finest evergreens for Tennessee is the relatively unknown Japanese plum yew (Cephalotaxus harringtonia). Related to the true yew (Taxus), Japanese plum yews thrive where the true yews fail. They are superb performers in hot and humid climates, and yet tolerate severely cold temperatures. One specimen survived minus 24 degrees Fahrenheit at Bernheim Arboretum in Kentucky with only minor damage.

Japanese plum yews have glossy, dark green needles arranged in bottlebrush fashion around their branches. Some have branches with needles in parallel rows. These plants grow well in shade or full sun, but in hot climates like those in West Tennessee, foliage color will be better if the yew is planted where it has access to a little shade.

In the Southeast, where low-growing hollies and junipers are an all-too-common sight, the moderately sized Japanese plum yew will make a graceful addition to a home or commercial landscape.

Japanese plum yews tolerate wet soil, but they grow better in soil that is well drained and moderately fertile. They are also drought tolerant when fully established in the landscape. An added benefit of the plant is that deer avoid eating Japanese plum yews. In locations where deer are known to decimate true yews, the Japanese plum yews are unscathed.

Among the several varieties of Japanese plum yew on the market is the outstanding 'Duke Gardens'. Discovered as a mutation of Cephalotaxus harringtonia 'Fastigiata' in 1959 at the Sarah P. Duke Gardens in Durham, North Carolina, this lovely plant is a slow grower. It may take 15 years or more to reach five feet tall and somewhat wider. Under ordinary landscape conditions, these plants grow in elegant oval or rounded forms, with graceful, upswept arching branches as much as five feet across.

'Duke Gardens' is a female form. If a male plum yew is in the vicinity, 'Duke Gardens' will bear fruit that resemble little plums that turn rosy brown as they ripen in autumn.

Look for 'Duke Gardens' in better garden centers and nurseries in your area, and give this splendid performer a try.

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Jeffrey K. Webb is a graduate student in the University of Tennessee Department of Plant Sciences. He works under the guidance of Dr. Susan Hamilton, director of the UT Gardens. The UT Gardens are located on Neyland Drive in Knoxville. They are free and open to the public seven days a week during daylight hours.