Plant of the day: Yew tree/Marjakuusi (Taxis Baccatus)
A highly toxic evergreen tree usually found in West and Central-Europe. Every part of the plant is lethally toxic (the needles, seeds, smoke etc.) except for the red aril around the dark seed. The taxane in the bark has also been used as a treatment for cancer.
It’s commonly associated with life, death, resurrection and for the Celts it symbolized a gate to the other world because of its longevity (a yew tree can live for millenia & according to some forever) and growth method (slowly growing new outer layers as the heartwood is rotting). In England especially the tree has been associated with graveyards since Edvard I had them planted to protect the churches from storms in 1307 and the tradition continued.
