If your olive tree was grown in a greenhouse, put it outside in a place that isn’t too hot or too cold. The first day, leave it outside for three to four hours. Then, each day, leave it outside for one or two hours longer. Before long, the sapling should be able to stay outside all day.
Plant your olive tree in a sunny place that gets at least six to eight hours of sun a day. The soil should be rich and well-drained. To plant, add peat moss to clay-heavy soil. Olive trees should be spaced about 20 feet apart.
The hole for the container should be bigger than the container itself. Tease the tree’s roots apart if they’re around. Place the tree in the hole a little above ground level and backfill with peat-enhanced soil. There is no need to add fertilizer to your plants right now. Water your new tree every day until it gets used to the water.
If your tree starts to fall over, don’t stake it. It’s better to cut back the branches that aren’t in the right place. Pull any weeds that grow three feet from the trunk. The fabric mulch can help, but don’t let it touch the trunk of the tree.
How can I get the best results?
This is how it works: Olive trees are native to Mediterranean climates. Anything you can do to make the area hot, dry, and sunny will help your tree grow.
A lot more sun will make your harvest better. If the temperature drops below 20 degrees Fahrenheit, don’t plant olive trees. This is bad for the trees. Wrap them in burlap if there is going to be a lot of cold weather.
Care for Olive Trees
A lot of water and nutrients
For the first few years, water your olive tree very little but often. In times of drought, you should water more, but not so much that you drown the plants. The roots of the plants will get deeper into the soil, which means they will need less water. In general, if the soil feels dry, give them a drink that is about four inches of water each time they water. Unless it’s very dry outside, you should not need to add extra water to your plants once they’re established.
Nitrogen-based fertilizer should be used to feed the trees in the spring. Alternatively, you could give them a good layer of compost every year. This should be enough to give them the nutrients they need.
Pollination
Many types of olive trees, like Manzanillos and Koroneikis, are self-pollinating, which means you can grow just one tree and still have a harvest. This means you can grow just one tree and still have a harvest. Others, like Coratina and Picholine, need another tree to help them get pollen from other trees. You can ask your grower what kind of pollinator they think would be best for your plant.
Pruning
In the late winter, cut back branches that have been broken or cross each other, then cut them back. For the first few years, only prune the tree to shape it. The next time you prune, do it to let more air flow into the canopy and also to let new growth happen each year, which is where the flowers and fruit grow.
There are a lot of pests and diseases around.
Olive trees are strong and don’t have many pests or diseases. With neem oil you can get rid of the scale on them, though. With fly traps or other fly-killing products, you can keep the olive fruit fly at bay on the West Coast.
Anthracnose, which is a fungal disease, can be treated with any spray that is meant for fruit and ornamental trees.
Harvesting
Every other year, you’re likely to get a small amount of olives from your trees. This is something to keep in mind if you’re growing olives for business. If you pick your olives while they’re still green, they may be a little bitter, depending on the type. They should be picked when they are ripe and dark purple. Olives that will be used to make olive oil should be picked at this time.
If you are a small-scale grower, you can pick the fruit by hand. You can also spread a tarp on the ground and shake the limbs by hand to get the fruit out.
Soil
If you want to plant an olive tree in the ground, you first need to think about where to put it. Make sure the tree won’t be in a valley. Otherwise, when it rains a lot, water will pool around it. It would be ideal if you raised the ground a little where you were planting the tree to avoid this and make water run away from the base of the tree.
Dig a hole in the ground the same size as the olive tree’s current pot. Then, lower the root ball into the ground without moving it, and the olive tree will be ready to grow. Use only potting soil that comes with the tree. Do not add compost or organic matter. A young olive tree needs to get used to the soil it will be living in, so you should not change it. You should only use natural soil from the same area to fill in around the root ball. The only time this isn’t true is if your native soil doesn’t drain well. Olive trees need a lot of water to grow, but they don’t like to be kept in wet soil. Because well-draining soil is important for the health of the tree. The soil should be changed if it doesn’t drain well.
Light
Olive trees need a lot of sunlight. They thrive in areas that are bright, hot, and dry. They don’t like to grow in the shade. As long as you keep your plant in a pot, you can move it around. This way, you can move the olive tree around so it gets the most light.
It’s best to put olive trees in the ground in areas that aren’t near buildings or fences, so they won’t be harmed by those things. if you live in a cold place where the olive tree won’t be able to grow during the winter, you can grow it inside. Your brightest window or a conservatory is the best place for your olive tree to grow inside. It should get at least 8 hours of sunlight each day.
Temperature
As a result, olive trees are native to places like the Middle East as well as parts of Africa and Asia. This means that olive trees enjoy hot summers and cold winters. Frosts can damage young olive trees and sometimes they can’t be saved. Once established, they are hardy to frosts. 14 degrees Fahrenheit is the lowest temperature they can handle. They should not be kept in this low of a temperature for a long time, though. If you live in a place where the temperature can fall as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit, you might want to grow your olive tree in a container and bring it inside for the winter.
There are a lot of olive trees that can grow in USDA zone 6. They should bring their olive trees inside to keep them warm in the winter. Olive trees, on the other hand, don’t like to live in places that are always hot. If they want to grow, they need two months of cool weather where the temperature should be between 40 degrees Fahrenheit and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. They also need the temperature to fall overnight. Because of these rules, olive trees that live indoors aren’t likely to produce fruit because they won’t get the temperature changes they need.
As long as you live in a place where these kinds of temperatures are normal, you should be able to grow an olive tree that has fruit. In other places, growers may not be able to provide the right conditions for their olive trees to produce fruit, and they may have a hard time getting them to. If you don’t care about the fruit, you can grow an olive tree in a lot of different places (University of Florida- Gardening Solutions).
Propagation
Professional olive growers usually start new trees by grafting them together, but cuttings can also be used to start new trees for olives, which can be grown. Cuttings of semi-ripe trees can be taken in the summer. They should be about 4 to 6 inches long. Afterward, they can be dipped in rooting hormone and planted in a well-draining pot of soil.
Heating the cuttings from the bottom up will help them grow roots. Also, you can do the same thing with hardwood cuttings that have been taken from mature trees in the winter. These cuttings should be a few years old. They should be at least 12 inches long, but it’s best if they are a little longer.
The Olive Tree’s View
Quick Facts
Origin | Mediterranean, Africa, and Asia |
Scientific Name | Olea europaea |
Family | Oleaceae |
Type | Evergreen fruiting tree |
Common Names | Olive tree |
Height | Up to 30 feet |
Toxicity | Nontoxic |
Light | Full sun |
Watering | Drought-tolerant, but water often |
Pests | Scale insects |
Olive Tree Types
There are a lot of different types of olive trees that you can buy. Even though the trees are self-fertile, having a mix of cultivars in your garden will help them cross-pollinate and produce more fruit. Choose from the following types of plants.
Olea europaea ‘africana’
This tree has smaller fruit and glossy leaves in a dark green shade that look good.
Olea europaea ‘frantoio’
This type of olive tree produces fruit that is often pressed to make olive oil. It is a very popular type in Italy.
Olea europaea ‘sativa’
This olive tree has small white flowers that bloom in the spring and summer. They have a pleasant smell (Royal Horticultural Society).