Yew Tree Danger???

[Tom D]

With Laurel the cyanide is in the leaves and fruit and not on the wood as far as I know, I have burnt loads of it on the fire...

[Chris Sheppard]

Thanks for all the advice guys much appreciated!!

 

Is it worth keeping the logs for firewood?

 

Cheers

 

Once dry, it burns hotter than just about any other wood I've encountered - proper grate warping stuff

[Tim Ashburner]

Hi

 

Please see the attached we have received from an estate we survey / manage, they have raised concerns that vulnerable adults with learning difficulties could ingest berries etc. I know the risk would be seen as extremely low and such people should be closely monitored etc. They have been advised of an instance in 2022 where someone died from swallowing berries and needles and are now advising the following (Any thoughts):-

 

Yew Tree.pdf

[peds]

Yew berries do look delicious all right, it seems kind of unfair that are so perilous.

Easily understandable that people with learning difficulties would be particularly at risk. 

[Mark J]

3 hours ago, Tim Ashburner said:

Hi

 

Please see the attached we have received from an estate we survey / manage, they have raised concerns that vulnerable adults with learning difficulties could ingest berries etc. I know the risk would be seen as extremely low and such people should be closely monitored etc. They have been advised of an instance in 2022 where someone died from swallowing berries and needles and are now advising the following (Any thoughts):-

 

Yew Tree.pdf 761.36 kB · 7 downloads

Options as I see them:

 

1. Give them a price to remove each berry from the yews.

 

2. Give them a price to fence off yews. 

 

3. Give them a price to crown raise all the yews. 

 

4. Hope that nobody starts eating the laurels. 

[peds]

Regarding option 1, it is both berries AND needles that are poisonous. Quote should include the option to remove all needles from the trees too. 

 

Regarding point 4... I'd imagine the quantity of ingested laurel needed to get a bad result would in itself be protection enough. How many whole leaves need to be eaten to get the effect?

[Mark J]

57 minutes ago, peds said:

Regarding option 1, it is both berries AND needles that are poisonous. Quote should include the option to remove all needles from the trees too. 

 

Regarding point 4... I'd imagine the quantity of ingested laurel needed to get a bad result would in itself be protection enough. How many whole leaves need to be eaten to get the effect?

The flesh of the berries of yew isn't poisonous, just the seed itself, which will pass through you unscathed if you don't chew it.  If you eat the bark you're also in trouble.

 

Laurel berries themselves will do you a great disservice.

 

What is the estate supposed to do about ruderal plants like foxgloves or 'lords and ladies', they probably look appealing to someone who likes eating flora.

 

In terms of people climbing trees, most trees you'll see in urban environments have been pruned to render access without ladders, monkey fist of rope, throwbag, or MEWP impossible. 

 

Yew trees don't suit that type of pruning and I think it would be a shame to try and alter their habit to accommodate people who probably shouldn't be climbing them. There are loads of other trees that people could climb if they wanted to climb trees. 

 

My local park has this tree. It's known as 'The Octopus Tree', they encourage climbing of it. (They do frown on teaching someone how to ascend a 25m beech though).

 

Edited August 22 by Mark J

[peds]

7 minutes ago, Mark J said:

The flesh of the berries of yew isn't poisonous, just the seed itself, which will pass through you unscathed if you don't chew it.  If you eat the bark you're also in trouble.

 

Someone else said that a few posts back, very interesting. I wonder if they are actually pleasant, though, and worth the hassle. Might nibble on one the next time I see a yew, and report back.

 

That's a fine looking climbing tree, perfect for youngsters to break their first bone in... or practice the avoidance thereof. 

[sime42]

2 minutes ago, peds said:

 

Someone else said that a few posts back, very interesting. I wonder if they are actually pleasant, though, and worth the hassle. Might nibble on one the next time I see a yew, and report back.

 

That's a fine looking climbing tree, perfect for youngsters to break their first bone in... or practice the avoidance thereof. 

 

They're not worth the effort really. They are kinda sweet, but only vaguely and no acidity to excite the palate. Just insipid. The thrill of carefully eating something potentially poisonous is the only reason to try them. Speaking from experience here, ever the curious cat me.

 

 

[peds]

Huh. Might give it a miss then.

 

But then I wonder if they'd have any more noticeable qualities when prepared instead of raw, such as in a jam or chutney... either as a supporting player of in the lead role.

I was gifted a jar of, oddly enough, giant hogweed chutney once... which is definitely one way of disposing of it I suppose, but against the onion, apple, marrow, and vinegar, it wasn't exactly prominent, and could even have been a lie. Who knows?

 

But we stray further from the topic at hand.

Do not feed yew to adults with learning difficulties, even if chutneyed.