These are live, fully rooted Podocarpus starter plants, under 12 inches tall at shipping. The listing photos show mature plants of the same species so you can see how yours will look as it grows. Grown and shipped by Carlo's Plant Farm.

Latin Name: Podocarpus macrophyllus, family Podocarpaceae. Despite the needle-like foliage it is not a true conifer, and despite one of its common names it is not a yew.

'JAPANESE YEW' IS TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PLANTS - and the difference matters if you have animals. This plant, Podocarpus macrophyllus, is sold as Japanese yew, Buddhist pine and southern yew. The ASPCA's own entry for it carries the warning: do not confuse with yews of the genus Taxus. Taxus is seriously cardiotoxic and can kill livestock and pets outright. Podocarpus is rated low severity by comparison. If you have been warned off 'Japanese yew' before, this is probably not the plant you were warned about - but read the safety note below anyway, because it is not harmless either.

Description: A dense, upright evergreen with soft, strappy dark green leaves arranged in neat spirals up the stem. It shears into a crisp formal hedge better than almost anything else that grows in Florida, and it is equally good left alone as an informal column or grown in a large container.

Size: Sources genuinely differ, so here is the spread rather than one flattering number - NC State gives 15 to 50 feet tall by 6 to 8 feet wide, UF/IFAS 30 to 40 by 20 to 25, and Missouri Botanical Garden 20 to 40 by 10 to 20. A great deal of what the trade sells as Podocarpus macrophyllus is actually the shrubbier variety maki, which stays much smaller; we cannot verify which form our mother stock is, so plan for a large plant and shear it to the size you want.

GROWTH RATE: SLOW. We want to correct this one plainly, because it is the most common misdescription of this plant, and it cuts both ways. Slow growth is why the hedge stays crisp for years between shearings - but it also means this is not the plant to buy if you need a screen by next summer.

Hardiness: USDA zones 8 to 10 is the safe range. NC State gives 7a to 9b and UF/IFAS gives 8B to 11, so the sources do not agree at the edges; treat zone 8 as your floor unless you have a sheltered spot.

Light: Full sun through to fairly deep shade - one of its best qualities. It keeps its density in shade where most hedging thins out.

Soil and water: Well-drained soil is the requirement, and it is intolerant of wet or soggy ground. Drought tolerant once established. Alkaline soil can bring on yellowing chlorosis.

Salt and deer: HIGH tolerance of aerosol salt (UF/IFAS) and deer resistant (NC State). For a coastal Florida garden that combination is hard to beat.

Pruning: It takes shearing extremely well, which is the whole case for it as a formal hedge. We are not going to promise it recovers from hard renovation cuts into old wood, because that is not documented - shear little and often instead.

A Florida pest note: the podocarpus aphid turns up anywhere this genus is grown in Florida. It curls the new growth, drops honeydew and brings sooty mould with it. UF/IFAS considers control usually unnecessary; insecticidal soap or horticultural oil handles it if you want to.

Safety - please read. The ASPCA lists this plant, as Buddhist Pine, as TOXIC to dogs, cats and horses, with vomiting, colic and diarrhoea among the signs, so we have left the safety field blank. There is a genuine split worth knowing: NC State records that the fleshy purple aril around the seed is edible, while THE SEED ITSELF IS TOXIC. UF/IFAS puts it more simply - best to avoid ingesting any part of this plant that resembles fruit. Keep the fruit away from children and pets.

Please read the following terms of the sale completely:

Terms of the sale: The customer agrees to all the following when purchasing from Carlo's Plant Farm. All sales are final. All orders are insured against damage or loss.

The customer assumes all risk of loss or damage once USPS takes possession. If the order is damaged in any way during shipping, the customer agrees to file an insurance claim. Carlo's Plant Farm agrees to assist the customer in filling out the form.

We reserve the right to delay shipping due to extreme heat or cold.