Japanese yew and dogwood at Shingu Shrine (city-designated natural monument)

Shingu Shrine, where the yew and the Japanese yew trees are found, was once a large temple of grand scale. It is located on a hill behind the grounds of Choraku-ji Temple, of which only the Kannon Hall remains today. In front of it are the Astram Line's train depot and the Numaji Transportation Museum (Hiroshima City Transportation Science Museum). The date of the shrine's founding is unknown, but it was originally enshrined within Choraku-ji Temple as a result of Shinbutsu Shugo (syncretism of Shinto and Buddhism). After Choraku-ji Temple was abandoned, the shrine building was moved to its current location in 1716. At the entrance to the shrine, a yew tree was planted on the left and a Japanese yew tree was planted on the right, but unfortunately the yew tree died in 2013. Japanese yew trees are evergreen conifers found in Japan and China (Yunnan Province). In Japan, they are found from Iriomote Island to Chiba Prefecture, and are not known to grow wild anywhere in Hiroshima Prefecture except Miyajima. The wood is resistant to insect damage and is an excellent building material. There are a relatively large number of these trees at shrines and temples in the prefecture, but this Inumaki is one of the largest in the prefecture, and after an Inumaki tree in the grounds of Matsukasa Kannon (Kuchida Minamimachi, Asakita Ward) was destroyed by Typhoon No. 19 in September 1991, it became the largest tree in the city. Location: 1-70 Chorakuji 3-chome, Asaminami-ku, Hiroshima City Date of designation as part of the grounds of Shingu Shrine: March 26, 1992 Summary: Inumaki: Height 16.5m, trunk circumference at chest height 223cm, branch spread: east 7.0m, west 6.4m, south 6.5m, north 6.9m