When a plant is this classic and well-behaved, it winds up being grown in almost every community across USDA Growing Zones 4 - 8! The Hicks Yew (Taxus x media 'Hicksii') is a popular shrub that forms a thick, bushy barrier that won't lose its color or foliage in winter! A real favorite with professional landscapers, the Hicks Yew may not turn heads as a specimen plant, rather, with its dense, dark and shiny green needles, these plants make a fantastic vertical screen or background. It's a perfect "supporting actor" for showier plants. Often called the "backbone" of landscape design, evergreens such as Hicks Yews work hard to provide year-round structure, privacy, and property definition. They are easy-care plants that work in sun, shade and everything in between! The outstanding upright form of this evergreen shrub has a loose, columnar shape that is wider than it is tall. This improved variety grows faster than English Yew as a young plant. Yews are generally very long-lived plants. A beloved specimen in Scotland is 5,000 years old! We bet you have dozens all around your neighborhood! Keep your eyes out for these attractive, easy-care workhorses! Planting and Application: There's a reason that landscape artists use the Hicks Yew for so many purposes. This lovely evergreen looks great planted along your property boundary or in a line beside your pool for a bit more privacy. Plant them 18 inches apart (measured from trunk to trunk), so they'll grow together as a single screen. Hicks Yews make handsome partners flanking opposing sides of your entryway, outdoor room, or garden entrance. Plant them to shield your patio from prying eyes, and to provide shade from late afternoon sun in the Zones 3 - 5. It can also be used as a foundation plant at the corner of your house. There, its narrow growth habit and uniformly dense foliage will ground the home with the surrounding landscape beautifully and very effectively! They make incredible backdrops for your perennial border, wildlife, or woodland garden. Try them in large containers, for portable screening. If you buy larger plants, you won't have as long to wait for your new privacy screen! Give them enough room to grow into their full mature size. Yes, you can prune them - but if you plan for their full size, you'll be happy in the long run! You can let these shrubs grow naturally without being sheared and therefore allowing the berries that birds go crazy for to form among the branching! Dark Green Thick Evergreen Shrubs Birds Love The Shelter & Food Takes Hard Shearing Or Can Be Grown Naturally Tall Columnar & Narrow Form Long-Lived, & Resilient & Hardy! Great Topiary Specimens, Privacy Screen, Outdoor Garden Rooms & Backdrops #ProPlantTips for Care: The English Yew can take just about anything you throw at it, from artistic topiary pruning to poor city environments. These dark green plants grow well in any drained soil. Full sun or shade makes no difference, they'll do just fine in any sun exposure! All evergreens appreciate mulched beds 3-4 inches deep and a good drink before the winter months. You can prune or shear it to control the height, but that's just a quick job once it reaches the height that you would like it to be. Some like to prune the tops into a point for a narrow formal pointed evergreen. Or, let it grow naturally into tall hedges. Older plants can be rejuvenated by trimming out longer portions of the plant back to a part of the stem that still has needles on it. Grows Well in Sun or Shade Wide Range of Well-Drained Soils Moderate Moisture & Appreciates Mulched Beds Prune or Shear After Flowering Low-Maintenance & Easy to Grow! This plant is a great example of the head start you'll get when you buy larger plants. For the Hicks Yew, buy as large a container size as you possibly can. You'll definitely appreciate the larger impact it will have in your yard. Lushly thick, the columnar Hicks Yew is an impressive evergreen! Order enough to complete your project today from Nature Hills. Like so many others, we know you'll love this classic choice!
