Is yew wood poisonous?

T

TheBear

New member
Hi everyone,

I just started to get into archery and i've made a pretty nice robinia flatbow with i find schoots pretty well (even though i barely even touched a bow before, so i can't compare with anything).

I now got an italian yew log from a friend of mine (he isn't an archer but just happened to have cut a tree some years ago) and i am about to cut it up and try to make some nice bows out of it but i heard that the wood is poisonous so i wondered if it is safe to work with it.
Do the toxins wear off after a while or do i need some mask to prevent inhaling wood dust?
Please let me now.
 
Vagabond

Vagabond

New member
The fruit (greenish-black seeds) are very poisonous.

Yew bark and leaves (spines) are poisonous to cattle & other livestock.
Certainly the toxins in the leaves become worse when left to wither, suggesting they do not wear off.

Can't find any record of any human having died from eating the bare wood or snorting sawdust, but perhaps that's because there are no survivors...
I'd wear a mask and keep the door & windows open.

If we don't hear from you in, say, 1 month then we'll assume the worse.
Good luck.
(brave chap that, eh?).

See this link:
how poisonous is yew

V
 
Nightimer

Nightimer

New member
I have turned yew for about 20 years and I am still here !!
Berries and leaves are poisonous.
Not sure about the actual heart and sap wood (animals eat the berries and the leaves).
What the dust does is close my sinuses up so I finish up feeling like I have a bout of hay fever,and that is just walking into the workshop a while later after I have finished work.
Its the small stuff the dust extractor missed (I wear a full helmet respirator while I work).
Just wear a good dust mask(not the soppy ones they sell at B&Q) and wash your hands after you have finished,and also wear some type of overall as dust clings to clothes.
Some turners cannot work with Yew because of allergic reaction.
Just protect your lungs and eat only after washing your hands and you will be fine.
 
D

Deleted member 7654

Guest
All parts of the Yew except the flesh of the berries (bright red) are poisonous. Note the seed inside the berry is poisonous but the actual flesh isn't, and yes I have tasted it... slightly sweet and slimey, not worth trying to harves for any culinary use.
Some people can react to many wood dusts, so dust extractor is avisable when using power tools. I don't take any precautions when I use hand tools.
If you have asthma or sinus trouble I'd suggest maybe a mask when sanding is a good idea.
I don't worry about handling it at all, despite being very prone to sinus trouble.
Del
 
K

Kieran Little

Member
As has already been said it all contains taxine, which isn't nice stuff..

Some people can have allergic reactions to it, be it from handling it, dust on the skin, inhaling dust. But basically listen to what your body is saying when working it.

Wear a mask, thats the dangerous part sorted, even if its just an N90. If, when handling/working the wood you feel itching on your exposed skin, you've got an allergy, if it goes beyond itch to a mild burn, stop. Jump in a shower and wash it off your skin (avoiding eyes, nose, mouth, etc) and neck some antihistamines, if it doesn't go away, GP..

This is true for any wood and at any time, people can develop reactions they've never had before and its not restricted to yew.
 
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