The yew forest on the Hainberg is one of the few remaining fragments of the former Central European yew occurrences.
The history of the Eibenwald am Hainberg can be traced back to the year 1573 using historical documents. Among other things, beams were cut from strong yew wood for the church in Reyershausen. In the middle of the 19th century, the neighboring yew forest on the Plesse plateau was already extinct and the yew forest on the Hainberg was classified as a meager residual occurrence.
The Eibenwald formerly belonged to the lords of the nearby castle Plesse. As early as 1908, the existing structure was judged to be worthy of preservation and protection and was placed under protection as a natural monument.
In 1972 the yew forest was raised to the rank of a natural forest reserve by decree of the (former) Lower Saxony Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Forests as part of the voluntary commitment.
The yew tree population is listed today by the district of Göttingen as a natural monument Bovenden / Pleßforst, in the list of natural monuments in the district of Göttingen.
Source: Wikipedia