Taxus mairei

Taxus is distributed in the Northern Hemisphere. there are only 5 genera and 23 species of Taxus mairei in the northern hemisphere. there are only 5 genera and 13 species in China. This kind of plants naturally grow in coniferous or broad-leaved forests above 1200 meters above sea level. in the past 20 or 30 years, it is mainly focused on several species of Taxus, such as Taxus yunnanensis, Taxus yunnanensis, Taxus mairei and Taxus mairei.

Taxus mairei is one of the precious tree species, with fine texture, moisture resistance and non-decay; the tree shape is whirling, medium green, and likes dampness and shade. It has long been introduced by garden workers as a landscape plant for multi-storey gardens or back shade plants. in recent years, it also makes use of its beautiful evergreen and shade-tolerant characteristics to enjoy potted plants.

In addition to being used as a garden ornamental, the folk have always been well aware of its therapeutic value: bark has the effect of removing dampness and relieving pain, for relieving air pain, nephritis edema and rheumatism; leaves with heat-clearing and detoxification, for tonsillitis; and its seed oil can dispel worms and eliminate food, tonify the kidney and consolidate essence. The study of paclitaxel containing 100000 of its bark began in the sixties and seventies of the last century, and it showed good efficacy in the treatment of uterine cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, gastric cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer and leukemia.

In the eighties of last century, Europe and China have been able to extract paclitaxel from its branches and leaves, the content of paclitaxel is 1%, and widely studied, extracted and determined from a variety of plants of the same genus.

Cultivate and plant in large quantities. It is reported that 10 million Chinese yew trees with the highest taxol content have been cultivated in the United States, and they are still developing one after another. The study of rapid cutting propagation has also been widely carried out in China, with remarkable results, but there is no report of large-scale planting.

No matter which kind of yew is planted in the low altitude area of Guangzhou, it is always a kind of inhibition to the normal growth of Taxus mairei when the temperature is higher than 28 ℃ in summer and autumn and the temperature difference between day and night is only 6: 7 ℃. Of course, it may be a little better if the potted plant "moves the environment" to avoid the summer because of the fear of heat. In addition, slow growth is the nature of the tree species, and it should not be acted in haste because it shows tolerance to humidity (including air humidity) and like fertilizer in nature, and frequently irrigates and fertilizes the plant to promote its growth, resulting in the final destruction of the plant.

It blossoms from March to May and bears "fruit" (without pericarp) from July to August. It is oblate and round, which is larger than soybean grain. The aril of most seeds of this genus is bright red or purplish red, but the seed sowing and germination will be delayed for several months or even a year, and the bud is irregular, so conventional propagation is often used by cutting.