Japanese Plum Yew: How to Grow Japanese Plum Yew Shrubs

A Japanese plum yew (Cephalotaxus harringtonia) is a slow-growing evergreen shrub known for its dark green needles and foliage. It is native to Japan, but it has also grown in Korea and China for many centuries.

Japanese plum yews derive their common name from the small plum-like fruit that they sprout. The botanical name refers to the Latin word for yew (taxus) and pays homage to one of the plant’s earliest European fans—the fourth Earl of Harrington, who lived during the nineteenth century.

There are quite a few different types of Japanese plum yew plants, but here are three of the most common:

1. 1. Rounded Japanese plum yew: The rounded Japanese plum yew (C. harringtonia var. drupacea) is a prominent shrub type of this plant. Use them as mass plantings to provide plenty of ground cover at the outer edges of your landscape.
2. 2. Spreading Japanese plum yew: The spreading Japanese plum yew (C. harringtonia 'Prostrata’) extends out like a low-growing boxwood hedge.
3. 3. Upright Japanese plum yew: The columnar or upright Japanese plum yew (C. harringtonia 'Fastigiata’) grows vertically like a small tree. It can reach up to ten feet tall.

It’s easy to care for the resilient Japanese plum yew, but you can still go the extra mile for this plant by following these seven key care tips:

1. 1. Check your climate. You should ensure you live in an appropriate Hardiness Zone to sustain Japanese plum yews through the chill of winter. These hedges are winter hardy in USDA Zones 6–9.
2. 2. Complement with other flowers. Japanese plum yew shrubs provide excellent ground cover for your garden. Complement them by planting a host of other flowers that will grow in their shade. Consider planting hosta, hydrangea, magnolia, or azalea plants and flowers alongside your yews.
3. 3. Provide both light and shade. Japanese plum yews grow comfortably in nearly any light environment, but they do best in a garden characterized by partial shade. The light of the morning sun rejuvenates them as much as the filtered sun of afternoon shade. The key is ensuring they get part shade, part sun throughout any given day.
4. 4. Plant male and female plants. These dioecious plants do best when you plant both sexes in the same garden. Male plants act as pollinators, enabling female plants to sprout the plum-like fruits that grow from these little hedges and trees.
5. 5. Prune if you please. Due to the plant’s slow growth habit, you won’t need to prune or even trim these slow growers very often. But you should feel free to trim these yews down to a more manageable size as soon as they get a little too tall or wide for you.
6. 6. Take care of food and water needs. When you’re dealing with new growth, give your Japanese plum yews some mulch and fertilizer. Water them weekly to ensure they get enough moisture to survive and thrive.
7. 7. Use the right soil. These yews will prosper in sandy, well-draining soil. This gives their root system plenty of room to spread out and take in moisture. Nearly any loam soil will be an ideal environment for Japanese plum yews.

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