Yew? Here?

[cadet]

I hang around on primitive archer a little, as well as here. A Pom on there is adamant that there are "some superb yew forests in Australia... and quite a few bowyers out there making really nice warbows out of it"
First I'd heard. Any leads? Or is that like asking for a bloke's favourite deer hunting spot?! Tightly held secret, or myth?! As far as I know, it's probably prime drop bear habitat...

[Nezwin]

I was fortunate enough to harvest some Yew last November from a nursery that had a tree that needed bringing down. But aside from that, I've had no luck finding any at all, let alone to harvest.

I hear that there's a fair bit of Yew on the Victorian south coast, particularly west, perhaps around Portland or Warrnambool. So not that far from the Macedon Ranges, if you're able to head south to find it or if you know of anyone willing to give you a tree. There's also a lot of evidence to suggest there could be a fair few Yew's in Tasmania, but that needs checking...

While down in Vic I was amazed at the number of Elms there are compared to NSW - another good bow wood (wych elm or slippery elm, chinese elm is useless), if you can get it. Europeans seemed to use it as *the* bow wood prior to Yew and it was still considered second-best throughout the Middle Ages. Celery Top Pine is a distant cousin to Yew and isn't tremendously different, although it certainly isn't Yew and would require a trip to Tassy. Cypress Pine appears to have similar characteristics to Yew but grows very differently, so finding a clean(ish) stave is difficult. I've also noticed it has considerably thicker sapwood, which would need chasing down to a ring, or backing.

You might notice from my bows that I'm pretty keen on the elastic, softer woods - if you find any more species be sure to share it!

[cadet]

Yes, we have elm and a few other worthy candidates, and I have some cut/split and drying to try out.

I did discover a really impressive old yew today. I had no idea I've been driving past it most days. It's got some magnificent, straight, clear branches on it. But I suspect the National Trust and the venerable institution whose land it's on - not to mention my cheese-and-kisses - who is a heritage horticulture consultant - would be a little upset if I pruned it...!

[hunterguy1991]

I make a few warbows (ok maybe more than a few) and I've heard all the rumours about big stands of it in certain states but ive never seen any proof...