Id like to try it this year...Anyone else from the canada side or same climate grow these with success?? and where do I get seeds
Growing olives
- Thread starter Canuck Pepperhead
- Start date
I picked up a year old cutting at a local nursery for $30 - says it may be 7 years before I get fruit.
Its a cutting taken from St. Helena Island (the one in Moreton Bay off Brisbane) Was the site of a hard labour convict prison from 1860's to 1920s.
I did hear that the original plant was brought over by Matthew Flinders.
Anyway after almost a year in the ground its almost doubled in height...still a wispy sapling though and is about 5' tall.
There are a few not far away at Wellington Point growing in volcanic red soil - those things are 90 years old & total monsters. Its hard to tell them apart from the Fig trees. So plan for a big tree thats going to be around a lot longer than any of us.
Its a cutting taken from St. Helena Island (the one in Moreton Bay off Brisbane) Was the site of a hard labour convict prison from 1860's to 1920s.
I did hear that the original plant was brought over by Matthew Flinders.
Anyway after almost a year in the ground its almost doubled in height...still a wispy sapling though and is about 5' tall.
There are a few not far away at Wellington Point growing in volcanic red soil - those things are 90 years old & total monsters. Its hard to tell them apart from the Fig trees. So plan for a big tree thats going to be around a lot longer than any of us.
Bit of annoying for when they get big, they drop olives EVERYWHERE! Had a tree out in LA that I took care of from time to time.
My parents had an guy down the road start up an olive farm years ago. He started with 1 foot high plants and it took them 6 years to start to produce....
Would love to do it but it's a little to long term for me. I would hate to plant a few trees and find that I move once they are established....and I don't think they are the sort of tree that would enjoy a pot....
Would love to do it but it's a little to long term for me. I would hate to plant a few trees and find that I move once they are established....and I don't think they are the sort of tree that would enjoy a pot....
Don't the olives themselves require processing to make them edible? You can't just eat them right off the tree...can you?
PrairieChilihead said:
Yup - some fairly simple pickling is required.
good link - http://www.cookeryonline.com/olives/Olive Pickling.html
I think google is going to be your best bet on varieties, but since you are in the UK get yourself over to Wilkinsons, they have Olive trees for about £3.
I would have thought it would be a variety suitable for our climate, but do it quickly because Wilkinsons get some good plants and then send them to the stores where they kill them slowly! (If any Wilkinsons staff are reading this, then water them or get smaller deliveries) If you don't get them within a couple of weeks you are just buying some compost and a stick in a cardboard box!
I would have thought it would be a variety suitable for our climate, but do it quickly because Wilkinsons get some good plants and then send them to the stores where they kill them slowly! (If any Wilkinsons staff are reading this, then water them or get smaller deliveries) If you don't get them within a couple of weeks you are just buying some compost and a stick in a cardboard box!
I've heard you can also make a tea with olive leaves... not sure if certain varieties are better for this than others, but it's something to keep in mind.
There are at least a few places that sell the stuff, so there must be something to it.
http://www.olivetea.com/
http://www.olivetea.com/
Yeah, olives are very slow growing, so larger trees tend to be considerably older... it's like with any fruit tree though, you should expect several years of growth before they'll start doing anything.
"Under good conditions and modern irrigation systems, olive trees take at least 10 years before they are mature enough to yield a satisfactory harvest. The peak production years for an olive tree are between 30 and 70 years old"
-found that here. Granted, this is for commercial production.
"Under good conditions and modern irrigation systems, olive trees take at least 10 years before they are mature enough to yield a satisfactory harvest. The peak production years for an olive tree are between 30 and 70 years old"
-found that here. Granted, this is for commercial production.
Amazingly when we lived in Greece, we saw trees up to a thousand years old being pulled out of the ground by JCB to make room for a new hotel.
The next day they were being dumped into a huge bonfire!
Yeah I know that they are slow growing, which is why i was looking for one that is a few years old at least. That FAQ page is pretty useful, gives a decent amount of background information, plenty of recipes as well as info on pickling.
Quite sad really! I'd happily take one of those off of their hands
I was looking into getting an olive tree specifically for trying the tea, but they just don't grow fast enough to be able to do it with any regularity, at least as a potted plant. I'd need to have a nice big tree planted outside, which is kind of difficult when you're living in a rental...
