In celebration of our newest display at The Leaf, Yasurgai: Gardens of Japan (on until November 17), we’re highlighting a very special tree that we’re lucky to have amongst our diverse collection of plants and flora! Explore the Tropical Biome and you’ll discover a living fossil that you might not have heard about before – the yew pine tree (Podocarpus macrophyllus.)

Basics: The yew pine is a coniferous, evergreen tree that can grow up to 20 metres high! Although it can reach some serious heights, it’s a slow growing plant, which has made itself a favourite among gardeners for its low maintenance and minimal routine pruning. This plant is also referred to as a Japanese yew, or more generally in Japan as a Kumasaki or Inumaki. It grows cones that look like berries that have two to four scales. 

Habitat: This species is the only from this genus native to Japan, Eastern Asia and Southern China, which makes for an interesting natural history.

Its Natural History: Its genus Podocarpus sp. has more than 100 species and is essentially a living fossil! Along with other groups like tree ferns, Araucarias, or cycads, they have been around and growing with minimal changes for millions of years. Podocarpus was first grown over 100 million years ago and were endemic to the Gondwana continent (which was a super-continent that broke apart to become Africa, South America, India, Australia-New Guinea, New Zealand and New Caledonia.) Although Gondwana broke up and became all of these countries, it somehow included very little of Asia where this plant currently originates from.

Using the Plant: The wood from this tree is very high quality and resistant to termites, so it’s been used to make homes for centuries! You can eat the cones of the plant, but avoid the seeds as they are toxic, so make sure they are removed before consuming.

A Very Lucky Plant: In many Asian countries, the yew pine is very valuable in Feng Shui and is commonly used for good energy as a good luck plant. This tree is also the state tree for Chiba Prefecture, Japan, which is home to over six million people.

Make sure to look for the Japanese flag in both the Hartley and Heather Richardson Tropical Biome and the Mediterranean Biome at The Leaf to learn about other plants a part of our collection that like the yew pine, originate from there.