Taxus Baccata – Young Plant – Informal Upright

Position: Surprisingly tolerant of very shady locations, its optimal positioning is with moderate sunlight, avoiding direct exposure during the hottest hours. Roots are rather sensitive to frost, so protect pots in winter from cold winds and night freezing temperatures.

Watering: Water moderately avoiding excessive moisture as it can favour root rot. Allow the rootball to get slightly dryer before watering again. Avoid excessively alkaline water.

Feeding: Feed generously during the whole growing season to favour wood formation, vigourous sprouts and back budding.

Repotting: Can be repotted in Autumn or Spring, rather infrequently due to its slow growth rate. Roots grow quite rapidly though, so they can be pruned relatively aggressively.

Soil Ph: Thrives in slightly acidic while tolerating also sligthly alkaline soils.

Pruning: Keep pinching new shoots when they start elongating to favour ramification and form dense foliage pads. Pinching 2 to 3 year old needles in Autumn will also stimulate back budding of new shoots in the same place where the old needle has been removed. Thicker, older branches can be pruned in Autumn. On female specimens, fruits formation requires not to pinch new shoots after flowering happens in spring.

Wiring: Wire all year long. While young branches are very flexible, bending older ones requires extra care due to the wood being exceptional strong (and still, flexible): stepwise tensioning, usage of guy wires and raffia can be very useful.

Pests and Disease: Very resistant to most diseases, root rot and fungal infections are the most dangerous threats.