European olive description. Olive tree: home care
The olive tree belongs to the Olive family. In the Mediterranean, in the south of Crimea, in the southern regions of Russia and in other areas with a mild climate, this plant is grown in open ground... In more severe conditions, you can grow it in a winter garden or in a spacious, bright room, including an apartment. Table trees will bear fruit regularly with proper care.
The olive tree belongs to long-livers. It has been growing for over 500 years. Olive trees grow in the Garden of Gethsemane (Jerusalem), the age of which, according to scientists, reaches 2000 years. Greece is considered the birthplace of the olive. According to an ancient legend, the goddess Athena sent an olive branch to this fertile land, from which the first tree grew.
Olives are a real treasure for human body... They contain over 100 nutrients. It seems that nature itself took care of the health, freshness and beauty of a person, giving him these priceless fruits.
Olives are the simplest and effective prevention diseases of the heart, blood vessels, gastrointestinal tract and malignant tumor breasts. To achieve the desired effect, it is enough to eat only eight olives a day or season salads with olive oil.
Oliva is the personification of deep internal cultural ties. At least that's what Thomas Friedman thinks. He expressed his thoughts on globalization and cultural identity in his sensational book Lexus and the Olive Tree, published in 1999.
Ornamental olive tree
Usually homemade olive is grown not for the sake of fruit, but because of its decorative, very attractive appearance. Today there are many varieties of this wonderful culture that have characteristics... For home cultivation, varieties that reach no more than 2 meters in height are suitable, which are suitable for growing in a container.
The olive tree at home is a miniature, evergreen plant with a spherical and compact crown. Young plants have a light gray bark, older plants have a darker one. Leaves are dense, narrow, lanceolate, dark green. They stay on the branches for a long time, do not fall off even in winter. They are updated every 2 years.
The flowers are white, small, bisexual, with a goblet calyx. The fruits are elongated-oval single-seeded drupes, about three centimeters long, which have a pointed or blunt end and a fleshy pericarp. The color of the fruit can be green or dark purple, depending on the variety. Its average weight is 15 g.
Olive tree at home
Many are worried about the question of whether this plant will take root in our apartments? Under natural conditions, the olive tree grows in semi-deserts, and on rocky mountain slopes, and on saline and poor soils. Sometimes where no other plant can survive.
The olive tree looks silvery from a distance, because its dark green narrow leaves on the underside are covered with a bluish bloom. It is even sometimes mistaken for some kind of willow.
The drought resistance of the olive is striking. In this, the date palm can be compared with it, probably. Both of these trees love when their crown is warm and the roots are cool. In search of moisture, they direct their roots very deeply, reaching groundwater, which is sometimes at a depth of 5-7 meters.
Olive tree: care
At home, this unpretentious plant does not require complex care. He needs a well-lit "place of residence", abundant watering during the period of active growth (March-August). In autumn, olive watering is reduced, and in winter, when the plant seems to freeze, the soil in the pots is moistened no more than twice a week.
Reproduction
The homemade olive tree, which is easy to care for even for a novice grower, is propagated by seeds, grafts and cuttings. To grow a tree solely for decorative purposes, the plant is propagated by seeds.
Preparing the seeds
This method is quite long, but it allows you to see the entire development cycle of the tree and guarantees its high survival rate. Before planting, they are soaked for 12 hours in a solution of caustic soda. Then they are rinsed with water and planted in a pot with a diameter of no more than nine centimeters to a depth of two centimeters. The soil should be moist and nutritious. In addition, you should pay attention to the fact that the earth is loose, light. Such a mixture consists of leaf and sod land, sand, peat in equal volumes. Large, oblong-shaped olive seeds are planted in small (5 cm in diameter) pots no deeper than 1 centimeter.
You will see the first shoots after 2 months. At this time, you should carefully monitor the soil moisture. It is recommended to water the sowing as the clod of earth dries up and try not to allow it to become waterlogged or dry out. Seed germination is usually 40-50%. Often, the seeds do not germinate or give non-viable, weak shoots, which die after a short time. If we grow an olive tree from seed, then the first fruits should not be expected until after ten years. If you want to speed up the terms of fruiting or flowering, the grown seedlings must be grafted onto varietal plants.
Surprisingly, an olive tree at home can even be grown from a stone. True, to receive good result a long preparation process is required.
Propagation by cuttings
In this case, the olive tree retains all its maternal characteristics. The first fruits appear in the third, in rare cases in the second year. Two or three summer branches should be taken. Their slices are carefully treated with a growth stimulant, then they are planted in sand ten centimeters deep, the seedlings are covered with glass on top (for this purpose, polyethylene can also be used).
For rooting, the optimum temperature is 25-27 ° C. It usually occurs within a month, after which shoots begin to appear. After 3-4 months, the root system is fully formed, and the seedling can be transplanted to its permanent place in a large pot.
Lighting
The olive tree, which is easy to care for at home, is very fond of good lighting, so southern window sills are suitable for young plants. Mature trees can be placed in a room in any well-lit place.
In the warm season, it is useful to take the plant out into the air - in the garden or on the balcony. An abundance of light is especially needed during the period of plant growth and bud formation. If it is not enough, the olive will slow down its growth. In winter, the tree needs additional lighting to prevent leaves from falling off.
The air should be warmed up to 18-22 ° С - this is the most comfortable for this culture. During the rest period (winter), the temperature should not exceed 13 ° C. Such conditions will facilitate the establishment of flower buds. Watering during this period is reduced; top dressing is not recommended to be introduced into the soil.
Blooming olive: care
During the flowering period, the plant needs more careful care. At this time, it is very important to monitor the condition of the soil. Watering is carried out as needed (when the top layer of the earth dries up). If there is not enough moisture, the leaves of the plant grow dull, curl up, and then fall off. This can even lead to the death of the tree.
Slightly yellowish to completely white flowers with a delicate and refined aroma bloom in mid-June. At home, the tree is decorated with delicate flowers for several months. Wind and insects pollinate the plant, but daily shaking of the branches is necessary for a home olive. With self-pollination, fruits can be set of different sizes, and cross-pollination significantly improves their quality and yield.
Despite the fact that the olive tolerates dry air well, we recommend sprinkling its crown in extreme heat. Until the age of four, the plant needs an annual transplant. This is usually done in early spring, and it is not necessary to change the entire contents of the pot, it is enough to replace only the top layer of the soil with a more fertile and fresh one.
Pruning
Regular pruning will help you shape the olive's crown into a neat, globular shape. During this procedure, remove dry and weak branches, shorten long shoots, create the desired shape. If you decide to grow an olive tree for fruit, remember that the bulk of the crop comes from last year's growth. Therefore, pruning must be done very carefully so that you can enjoy the harvest next year.
Despite the somewhat laborious cultivation process, the olive tree is unpretentious, not prone to disease. With regular and proper care two years after planting, you can admire the blooming olive and get a good harvest (up to 2 kg of fruits per year).
Top dressing
During the active growth and development of the olive (February-October), top dressing should be carried out regularly (once every fifteen days) with solutions and infusions of organic and mineral fertilizers. For better setting and development of fruits in the summer, it is useful to introduce double superphosphate. For this it is used water solution substances at the rate of five grams per liter of water. In addition, it can be mullein - a two-week infusion, diluted 15-20 times before use.
From November to February, the olive tree, which is contained in the room, slows down sharply all metabolic processes, and it goes into a state of rest. In winter, feeding is not carried out.
If you set out to grow a homemade olive tree, then you should remember that not enough light, excessive watering and very heat air in winter will not allow you to "tame" such a tree in your home. If you can cope with these obstacles, then you need to be patient, because compared to most plants that experienced growers know about, the olive develops very slowly, and it does not bloom too quickly. But indoor plant lovers are attracted by the fact that it can be grown all their lives - this small tree lives, according to scientists, at least three thousand years.
With a little effort, you can get the olives yourself. It will be an environmentally friendly product grown with love as a bonus.
The olive tree (lat. Olea) or European olive is a plant whose fruits are rich in oils and are used for food. These evergreen representatives of the flora belong to the genus Olives (Oleaceae). The species Olea europaea (cultivated olive), which is also called the olive tree, has become widespread. In addition to growing a plant for fruit, it is cultivated for decorative purposes. The first mentions of a cultivated plant appear in such places as Greece (Crete) and the Black Sea coast. Olives, in general, love the sunny and windy climate of Crimea, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and even India. And under more severe climatic conditions, they take root well in greenhouses or greenhouses.
An olive tree at home rarely reaches two meters in height. As a rule, these are dwarf specimens with a straight long trunk and a dense spherical crown. 
In the case of a houseplant, the olive can be made in the bonsai style, while the straight and thin trunk bends fancifully, and the root system is inhibited. Sometimes, from a distance, the eye catches the silvery tint of the crown, which looks amazing in the home interior, provided there is good natural light.
The white calyx of the olive flower is in the shape of a glass, rather small in size. The flowers smell very faintly and not harshly, rather like grass or rain-laden dust, figuratively speaking, like a steppe over the sea. 
The European olive is a bisexual plant, trees are male and female. To get fruit, it is necessary to carry out cross-pollination, therefore, to obtain a crop, often two different-sex seedlings are placed in one hole of the container. Contrary to popular belief that olives are green and olives are dark purple, it is worth noting that they are the same stone fruit. The only difference is ripeness. So that the tree does not bear fruit, but serves as a decor, the ovaries must be removed after flowering. It hibernates without shedding dense narrow leaves and remaining green all year round, renewing them only once every 2-3 years.
Classification
The inhabitants of the Mediterranean for centuries have withdrawn different varieties homemade olive, which differ percentage oils. The most oily ones belong to the oilseed group. Combined - suitable for processing and canning. Oil is not squeezed out of table varieties, but consumed raw, canned and pickled. Today the olive is grown not only in plant nurseries, but also at home. Popular table varieties: Crimean 172, Revolution, Nikitskaya 1, Nadzhviyskaya, Razzo, Askelano, Mession, Sevigliano, Urtinskaya, Otur, Coregialo.
Application
The composition of olives includes an oil rich in unsaturated fatty acids, which are very beneficial for the body. Vitamin F restores cell membranes, rejuvenating the skin. Medicine makes extensive use of the leaves of olive trees.
Care
The principle of the life of the olive is quite simple: the phase of growth and development, flowering, fruiting, dormancy or wintering. New shoots appear in February - April, when daylight hours increase and the plant begins to receive more light. Until then, the flower is in hibernation. During the dormant period, the plant accumulates strength.
If the tree is strong enough, flowers appear at the end of April. Flowering lasts several months, on average until early July. For healthy fruit to set, it is best not to rely on self-pollination. Gentle shaking of the twigs promotes the exchange of pollen between different inflorescences. You can use cotton swabs and transfer the pollen by hand.
In order for the flowering to be plentiful, in the fall and winter, the olive tree is provided with a dormant period (from November to February, when metabolic processes slow down), carrying it out to a warmed balcony (10-12 degrees), watering is reduced, and not touched. The manipulation is carried out with plants over five years old, which have not been transplanted for a year.
If fruiting is not planned, then in addition to the above actions, artificial crown formation is performed to care for European olive at home. It is advisable to remove young shoots near the trunk so that growth occurs upward, and not in breadth and the tree does not become like thickets. In adult plants, dry or weak branches are pinched off. Decorativeness is achieved quickly if pruning is carried out regularly. 
Growing an olive at home provides you with the opportunity, with sufficient competent care, to get up to 2 kg of a crop. In apartment conditions, it bears fruit every two years. Olive is not an easy crop, it can be more difficult to erase it for the first six months than any other greens. In particular, many difficulties arise if grown from seeds: the seeds are capricious, the germination rate often does not exceed 50%, and fresh shoots often lose their viability. But do not despair, because there are lighter ones, and they bring at times best effect, breeding methods such as grafting and grafting.
Conditions of detention
Olive tree like indoor plant grown in a pot requires certain conditions for healthy development, while it does not matter in what way it is planted, we will consider them in order:
The soil
Since olives grow in nature on loams and sandstones, it is necessary to select a soil of a similar composition. Trees do not like acidified soil, but a slightly alkaline environment is ideal for them. As a baking powder, you should choose a coconut substrate, volcanic tuff, small expanded clay. Before planting, the soil should be loose and moderately damp.
Temperature
Olive grows well in room conditions at a temperature of 18-22 degrees. However, during the wintering period, a decrease in temperature to 10-12 degrees is considered acceptable.
Lighting
A lot of light is required, it is good if it is bright sunlight from dawn to dusk, and not a table lamp for several hours a day. Otherwise, the tree will begin to wither and shed its foliage. It is recommended to expose the seedling to fresh warm air - this activates growth, it is useful for bud set.
Watering
It is desirable to control soil moisture, the adult olive tolerates dryness, but the roots begin to rot from the bays. However, with young seedlings, you need to be especially careful not to dry out barely hatched shoots. A sign that the olive does not receive enough water are dull, wilting leaves, which, rolling up, begin to fall off. During hot summer days, the crown should be sprayed with water from a spray bottle.
Lure
In order for the development to proceed actively, from March to mid-summer, it is recommended to apply complex mineral fertilizers, with a frequency of up to two times a month. Both root feeding and foliar feeding are possible - by spraying the leaves. Special tonics maintain the firmness of the leaves and stimulate their growth. There are ready-made balanced formulations in stores.
Reproduction
There are three ways to grow a fruiting olive tree.
From the bone
You should prepare more drupes, from live olives, and not from canned ones, because heat treatment of the fruit destroys the biological bonds in the seed. The kernels are kept under conditions close to the natural planting environment. This is room temperature, soaking for 12-14 hours in a slightly alkaline solution (10%). For the first planting, it is enough to have a pot 10 cm in diameter. The washed seeds are immersed in the soil 2 cm. The first shoots appear after six to eight weeks. Such a plant will be able to form ovaries only by the tenth year of life. If you want to speed up the process, young plants are grafted to older varieties.
Graft
In shops you can buy a potted olive tree, it looks compact, but has a thick trunk. Such specimens are obtained by grafting adult olive cuttings to seedlings grown from seeds. Cuttings are removed from fruiting individuals, therefore, trees obtained in this way are quite quickly ready to bear fruit. If there is a place to get a "mother", you can independently propagate the olive at home.
Cuttings
Several summer branches are cut off from the mother plant by an oblique cut. The ends are sprayed with a growth stimulator, the stalk is lowered into the hole 10-12 cm deep into the soil, the pot is needed with a depth of 20 cm. It is desirable to create the effect of a greenhouse, for this you should cover the seedling with a transparent jar. Heat varies from 25 to 30 degrees, no drops. The olive takes root in the fourth to fifth week, which will be signaled by the appearance of young leaves. The root system will finally form in 3-4 months, followed by transplantation into a larger container to a permanent place.
Transfer
For the first four years, the tree is transplanted annually. To figure out which month to transplant a room olive, you need to take into account the flowering period (late April - early July), for moving to a new pot, the period from February to mid-April is chosen. Before flowering, the olive is in short supply nutrients, therefore, the new soil will contribute to an increase in the number of flowers, the yield of the tree.
Diseases
This is an evergreen plant, practically free of diseases, resistant to pests, and leaf fall is not the norm. If this still happens, it is necessary to pay close attention to watering and it is possible to introduce spraying of the crown. You can also try to apply a complex mineral fertilizer to restore the strength of the plant.
Many tourists bring olive trees as souvenirs from Greece. Crete is at the forefront of olive growing, supplying most olive oil to the world market. The average lifespan of the Cretans is 80 years, and they explain their longevity by the regular consumption of olives and their processing products. Therefore, grow them at home, enjoy the healthy fruits and watch the beauty of the olive tree all year round! 
Images
at Wikimedia Commons
| ITIS | |
| NCBI | |
| GRIN | t: 25555 |
| IPNI | 610675-1 |
| TPL | kew-355112 |
European olive, Olive culture, or olive Tree(lat. Olea europaea) - evergreen subtropical tree of the genus Olive ( Olea) of the Olive family ( Oleaceae). The plant has been cultivated since antiquity for the production of olive oil; it is not found in the wild.
Other names - European olive, olive... Olive is also the name of the fruit of the olive tree; other names of the fruit - olive, olive .
Area
The cultivated form of European olive is grown in all Mediterranean countries, in Ukraine on the southern coast of Crimea, in Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast of Russia (in the region of Gelendzhik, Tuapse and Sochi), in Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan and northern India. In 1560 it was brought to America, where it is cultivated mainly in Peru and Mexico. It was first cultivated in Greece, where it is grown in large quantities to this day.
Botanical description
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Evergreen shrub 1-3 m or tree 4-5 (10-12) m tall. The trunk is covered with gray bark, gnarled, twisted, usually hollow in old age. The branches are knotty, long, drooping in some varieties.
Leaves
The leaves are narrow-lanceolate, whole-edged, gray-green, do not fall off in the winter and are renewed gradually over the course of two to three years.
Flowers
Depending on the climate, olive trees bloom from late April to early July. Fragrant flowers are very small, from 2 to 4 centimeters long, whitish, with two stamens, located in the axils of the leaves in the form of paniculate brushes. One inflorescence has 10 to 40 flowers.
If, 6 weeks before flowering, the tree experiences drought or lack of nutrients, then the yield drops sharply, since the number of flowers decreases. In this case, cross-pollination can help increase the yield.
Fruit
The olive fruit is a drupe, most often of an elongated-oval shape, 0.7 to 4 centimeters long and 1 to 2 centimeters in diameter, with a pointed or blunt nose, with a fleshy pericarp containing oil. The color of the fruit pulp differs depending on the type of tree. V different options it can be either green, black, or deep purple, often with an intense waxy coating. The stone is very dense, with a grooved surface. Fruit ripening occurs 4-5 months after flowering. Productive olive tree after 20 years. The tree has an alternating effect and bears fruit every 2 years. The average olive fruit consists of:
90% of the olives are used to make olive oil, which, even without preservatives, has a fairly long shelf life, which is of great importance for the Mediterranean. For commercial trade, olives are pickled with or without pits.
Abkhazia
On the territory of Abkhazia, the largest growing massif is about 4,000 trees, it is located in New Athos, on the lands of the New Athos monastery. At present, in the Gagra region, there are wild olive trees, living witnesses that in these places in the old days this culture was widespread.
Azerbaijan
Olives have been cultivated on the territory of present-day Azerbaijan for a very long time. This is confirmed by the remains of this plant found during excavations in Apsheron, Barda and other regions. Over time, the olive plantations of Azerbaijan were lost as a result of medieval wars and there is no literary information about the development of this culture until the 17th century.
At present, one of the oldest trees has survived in the village. Nardaran (Baku), which is at least 180-200 years old. In Baku, in the Governor's Garden, there are about 100 trees aged 80-90 years and in Ganja there are 6 trees of about the same age.
Georgia
Literary sources claim that the olive tree has also been cultivated in Georgia for a long time. At the end of the 18th century, significant plantings were created in the Tbilisi region, as well as in other places.
Italy
Italy far surpasses the classical olive-growing country of Greece in olive plantings. Olive is one of the main cultivated plants in Italy. Most of the olive groves in this country are co-located with grapes, citrus fruits, figs and almonds. According to the data of 1958, a total of 226 thousand hectares were occupied by olive plantations in Italy. In 1965, 1792 thousand tons of olive fruits were harvested in Italy.
Turkey
Among the countries that produce olives, Turkey ranks 4th in terms of the number of trees and 6th in terms of their area.
Ukraine
In Ukraine, the olive tree is grown in the Crimea, while it can grow not only on the southern coast, but also on the rest of the peninsula. According to inaccurate data, olives have been cultivated in the Crimea since 1785. And in our time, you can find individual patriarch trees that are 400-500 years old. There are also group plantings in the form of small groves. The oldest olive tree in Ukraine grows in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden, which is estimated to be up to 2000 years old.
Croatia
In Croatia, olive plantations were badly damaged during the Second World War, where the German invaders cut down and burned, according to incomplete data, more than a million trees.
Usage
Varieties
Olives can be roughly divided into two groups in terms of physicochemical characteristics and oil content: rich in oil content and less rich. Olives, which are rich in oil, belong to the olive group. The second group includes varieties suitable for processing, or canned varieties. The main indicators when evaluating canned varieties are the diameter of the fruit, its weight and the ratio of pulp and bone (the smaller the bone and the more pulp, the more valuable the fruit), the properties of the pulp and its chemical composition... Also, the variety of olives is determined depending on the place of growth, color, degree of maturity and size.
Food product
Since ancient times, people have eaten the fruits of the olive and made olive oil from them.
Olives are rich in fats; the yield of oil on an absolutely dry matter, depending on the pomological grade, ranges from 50 to 80%. Fruits are rich in proteins, pectins, sugars, vitamins: B, C, E, P-active catechins, contain salts of potassium, phosphorus, iron and other elements. In addition, the fruits contain carbohydrates, catechins, phenolcarboxylic acids, pectin substances, triterpene saponins. The leaves contain organic acids, phytosterol, oleuropein glycoside, resins, flavonoids, lactone elenolide, bitter and tannins, essential oil, which includes ethers, phenols, camphene, eugenol, cineole, citral and alcohols. The leaves contain glycosides, organic acids, bitterness, flavonoids and tannins.
Olive oil is the main product for which this crop is mainly cultivated. But the fruits of olives are widely used in the canning industry for the manufacture of canned food from green fruits, and from black - dry-salted olives. Provencal olive oil is used in the food industry for the production of delicious canned fish (sprats, sardines).
Canned olives, dry-salted black olives, and especially stuffed olives, have a spicy taste, are an appetizer, delicious canned food, complementing the assortment food products, and most importantly have a healing value.
Wood
Greenish-yellow, heavy, strong and curly wood, it lends itself well to polishing and is used to make furniture. It is also appreciated by woodcarvers, used for inlays and the manufacture of expensive turning and joinery.
Medical applications
They are trying to replace quin with olive bark, and infusions from the leaves normalize blood pressure and respiration. Experts say that olives have almost everything necessary for a person vitamins and minerals. The raw pulp of the fruit contains up to 80% of non-drying oil, which contains unsaturated fatty acids unique in their properties - oleic (75%), linoleic (13%) and linolenic (0.55%). Unlike animal fats, they are not only not harmful, but bring considerable benefit to the body - they prevent the development of atherosclerosis, heart and vascular diseases, do not contain and promote the elimination of cholesterol, and have a beneficial effect on the digestive organs. Spanish buttermakers believe that olives are useful for a person at any age and may well become the basis of even a children's diet. The fact is that the acids included in them - the main component of vitamin F - are necessary as a building material for cell membranes, and the body itself synthesizes them only partially
Russian name: Olive, European olive
Latin name: Olea europaea
Family: Olive
Homeland: Africa, Mediterranean
general information: Olive is considered one of the longest-livers of the plant kingdom. The average lifespan of an olive is 300 years, the maximum is 2000!
The plant is slow-growing, therefore long years can be indoors (up to 10-15 years). Evergreen tree.
Oliva - perennial, due to its ability to self-repair. It is a drought-resistant fruit species that can withstand short-term frosts down to -10 ° C. Olive trees grow well in soils with a sufficient lime content, on rocky sandy soil, their roots are so strong that trees can even grow in rock. The root system is very highly branched, it is several times larger than the projection of the crown of the tree, although it is located at an average depth of 80 cm. This allows the olive to withstand droughts. The root system and trunk form a thickening - a neck, which very often grows, expands. Young shoots grow from it every year, which must be constantly removed so that the tree does not turn into a huge bush.
The trunk of an olive tree is usually no higher than one meter. Young trees have ash-gray bark, old ones have dark, rough bark.
The leaves of the olive are opposite, lanceolate, green above, silvery-gray below. At the edges, the sheet is slightly bent (therefore, the area of heating by the sun's rays decreases). This particular leaf structure helps the plant to withstand severe droughts. During the wet mild winter, the olive accumulates in the leaves a large number of spare starch, which serves her a good help in spring and dry anhydrous summer. The evergreen leaves on the olive tree are replaced gradually, new leaves begin to form from spring to autumn. Leaf lifespan is one year, very rarely reaches two. A tree growth bud at the base of each leaf can be dormant for a long time, it begins to grow only if necessary - with severe pruning, damage from hail, etc. It is a very valuable property of the olive tree to always recover.
Flowers are small (0.4-0.5 cm), yellowish-white, collected in 15-30 pieces in axillary racemes, very fragrant. Blooms in May - June. The fruit of an olive is a green drupe (called an olive), after full ripening it changes color to dark and often black. The duration of formation and maturation from the moment of pollination to the moment of full maturity is 90-100 days.
A good harvest is considered to be 25-35 kg of fruits per tree. Olives ripen from October to December, again, depending on the variety and location.
It winters well at room temperature, it perfectly tolerates the fairly dry air of the apartment. There is one thing - at this temperature, the olive will never bloom. For flower buds, it is advisable to provide an olive tree with a cool rest in a temperature range of 5-8 ° C and with minimal watering. Flowers of two types germinate on the tree: bisexual and male flowers with only stamens.
In the wild, flowers are pollinated by the wind.
Types, varieties: Of the 60 known types of olives, only the European Olive (Olea europaea) is of economic importance. All varieties of olives are divided into varieties:
- the olives from which the oil is obtained (Olea europaea oleaster);
- table olives (Olea europaea sativa);
- the olives are dual use, there are not so many of them.
Air humidity: Does not need high humidity. In the heat, it is recommended to spray the plant once or twice a day.
Lighting: Maximum, loves light and sun.
Priming: Being not too demanding on the soil, olives will perfectly adapt to the soil for tub plants. A preferable soil mixture: turf soil, humus, sand (2: 1: 1) with the addition of lime. It is useful to add crushed brick and pieces of charcoal to the finished substrate. Good drainage is also essential.
Watering: Regular in summer, but not plentiful. In winter, the plant is rarely watered, they make sure that the soil lump does not dry out.
Care: Under natural conditions, the olive often goes through rather long periods of drought and intense heat, so it tolerates summer well in our climate.
Caring for an olive tree requires, first of all, sufficient lighting.
We recommend, despite the origin of this southern plant, to water it regularly and in moderation: so that the soil is not too dry, otherwise the leaves of the plant may fall off. For watering, you can not use very cold water, room temperature water is better. When it is actively growing, feed the plant about twice a month.
Top dressing: Top dressing is carried out once a week in the spring - summer period with complex fertilization with increased content nitrogen for early formation and formation of flower buds.
Reproduction: Propagated in summer by apical cuttings. This method seems simple at first glance, but in the case of olive, the breeding process with this method can be delayed. Try to propagate the olive with seeds (seeds), the best time for this is spring.
Seeds germinate at a temperature of at least 18-20 ° C, high humidity and good lighting in about 2.5 months.
The cuttings are rooted in wet sand in the summer, after pretreating the cut site with a root solution. Rooting conditions are the same as for other plants, when rooting by cuttings: high air humidity, sufficient lighting and a temperature of at least 20 ° C. Plants grown from seeds bloom in 10-12 years, and from a cuttings, possibly after 3-4 years.
Transfer: In order for the root system to form normally and without mechanical constraint, once every two years, carefully transfer the plant into a larger clay pot.
Pests: Olive moth. Its caterpillars eat buds and leaves. Control measures. Cut off and destroy all inflorescences. In case of severe infection, sprinkle with karbofos. Whitefly. Small butterfly. Its larvae suck the juice from the leaves, which turn yellow and fall off. Control measures. Process soapy water or a suspension of pyrethrum. If infestation is severe, sprinkle with decis.
20.12.2012
Svetlana
I live in the south of Kazakhstan, in the city of Alma-Ata. Here along the roads there are trees very similar to olive trees. The leaves are grayish, silvery, small yellow flowers are very fragrant, the fruits are small - up to 1 cm in length, the stone is similar to olive. But the pulp of the ripe fruit is dry, sweetish. The tree is called here - jigida, or juda. Interestingly, this plant is a relative of olives? In Uzbekistan, this tree has larger fruits up to 3 cm, also dryish sweet-sour pulp, edible.20.12.2012
margoshka
In the Odessa region, we also have trees like olive trees, and there are fruits, but not edible ones ... apparently they do not have enough heat for ripening. Svetlana, according to your description, they are very similar to these judas)28.12.2012
Kristina
I have a small olive tree at home, 20 cm in height (brought from Greece). For several months the plant felt good, underwent a transplant, even new leaves appeared. But then, somehow abruptly, it began to lose a lot of foliage. Now it is completely naked ... What happened and is it really possible to revive the tree? I watered it about once a week, because the earth kept moisture well, sprayed it (although, as it turned out, it was not necessary to spray). I began to spray at the beginning of the heating season - the tree stood on the window and apparently began to dry from the heat of the battery. Therefore, I moved it to another place, to a room where a humidifier is working (60% humidity). Air temperature 22-25C. But now the tree is not on the window, but in the middle of the room, so the sun falls a little (especially when you consider that it is winter now, and in Moscow sunny days in winter are a rarity).Please advise what to do !?
03.02.2013
Marina
02/03/2013 Dear Svetlana, what you describe looks more like a narrow-leaved elk. It is his fruits that are dry and sweetish. The fruits of the olive tree are very bitter and larger, up to 2 cm in length. My mother, when we lived in Azerbaijan, collected olives And I salted them myself. But before that, for several days, having pricked each berry, I soaked them, it seems, in a soda solution, and then washed them for several hours in running water.05.11.2013
Natalia
In Central Asia, the plant Jida is widespread and grows everywhere. The fruits, when ripe, are brown, possess medicinal properties... Unabi is a large-fruited jida variety.23.05.2014
Margarita
In Crimea, our olives grow from the coast of Alushta to Foros. Our soil is stony-clayey, and oleans are not afraid of the winds or the scorching sun. Salt the fruits ourselves, because even a little granddaughter in the family loves olives. This year I bought myself a tree. It bloomed in the first year. I hope to harvest this year.14.07.2014
Andrey
I have an olive tree she is already 17 years old. Olives up to 2cm in size. and next to it are small olives with the size of currants. Why is this so. Advise what can be done to make normal olives grow.15.09.2014
Margarita
Hello Margarita, I found your comment and decided to write. I want to say that I envy with white envy that you live in such a fertile land where olives grow in the open field, and I dream of growing at least in a pot, but I don't know where to get seeds for seeds. I searched the entire Internet, but did not find it. Maybe you can send me the bones by cash on delivery, I will be very grateful to you. By the way, my name is also Margarita.21.05.2015
Andrey
In our Odessa region in winter, the temperature gives short-term drawdowns up to -30, how can you protect the plant? Is it possible to grow in a greenhouse?31.10.2015
Helena
I have been living in Gurzuf, in the Crimea for almost two years. I myself am from Donetsk and I don’t know many southern plants. Today I saw a tree with fruits similar to olives - green. And she saw through it. The mouth now has unpleasant sensations. It was not an olive. Can't you answer me, please, what kind of tree is it? The leaves on it are green glossy, slightly elongated, but larger than on the olive tree. Later they showed me an olive tree. The tree is also evergreen. Thanks.02.12.2015
Help! olive sheds foliage !! what to do?27.12.2015
You did not write what conveyed the foliage dump. If flooded, transplant with inspection of the roots, remove rot, treat the roots with wood or activated carbon, trim the tops and on the warmest window.06.01.2016
oksana
Hello! presented an indoor olive tree, tell me when you can transplant into a large pot07.01.2016
cloud
Hello Oksana! It all depends on the size of the olive. If the plant is not large, then a large pot is not needed; if the plant sits in a transshipment container and has little space, food, etc. -that of course will not hurt to transfer into a larger pot. We roll over the plant as it grows23.03.2016
Irina
Touch the olive less and water less often. I was convinced by my own experience. I brought my olive 4 years ago from Greece. And this year, in March, she suddenly bloomed. Firstly, this year it was very badly heated in winter, the temperature did not exceed +22 in the apartment. Secondly, I very rarely watered (when the leaves began to curl) I think that this gave impetus to flowering26.05.2016
Shagida
Margarita, I also very much ask you to send the pits of the olive. It is warm in the south of Kazakhstan, I think it will grow. After all, persimmon grows. Answer I will send the address [email protected]23.06.2017
Irina
Dear Svetlana! I was so delighted with your comment ... My dad was born in the south of Kazakhstan and from childhood I remember his stories about the Judah bush. And I even saw branches that were acceptable to them for 2 p.23.06.2017
Irina
brought him 2 years in the spring from the territory of the power plant, where he worked and it was a miracle for him! On the territory of Tatarstan, in the middle Volga region (almost the Urals), suddenly this juda Then this shrub either disappeared or interfered with someone, disappeared. I remember the smell! Now dad is gone for a long time, but I dream of finding this jude and planting it in memory of his homeland. Thank you for the description! I don’t know where you can find seedlings ... I’ll look on the Internet.23.06.2017
Irina
Of course the time difference is 2012 (the date of your comment) and 2017 ...29.05.2018
Janis
Judah is very similar in description to silver goose. Look at the pictures on the internet. Very drought tolerant tree. Regarding Elena's commentary from Gurzuf, we can say that the olive tastes very warm. That is why it is soaked for about 30 days in water before salting. The water is constantly being changed. You can determine the species simply by asking the locals. They don't bite :)31.07.2018
Alesya
I live in the Odessa region. I bought a European olive seedling in the internet. Grows in a pot on a glazed balcony (east side) Survived 2 winters. True, when it was very cold, she opened the balcony or brought it into the room. So I overwintered. And this summer it bloomed and tied a couple of fruit trees. Let's see what grows up.Botanical name: European Olive or Cultural Olive, or European Olive (Olea europaea). Representative of the Olive genus, the Olive family.
Homeland of the European olive: southeastern Mediterranean.
Lighting: photophilous.
The soil: loose, nutritious, slightly acidic.
Watering: moderate.
Maximum tree height: 10 m.
Average life expectancy: 2000 years.
Landing: seeds, cuttings.
The European olive is an evergreen tree that grows in the tropics and subtropics, the maximum height of which is about 10 m. On average, the tree will grow up to 5-6 m. The trunk is twisted, knotty, with gray bark. The branches are long, knotty, sometimes drooping. Leaves are lanceolate, whole-edged, leathery, opposite, smooth above, gray-green, light below, pubescent. They stay on the tree for a long time, not falling even in winter. They change gradually over the course of 1-2 years. New leaves are formed from spring to autumn. The flowers are small, 1-2 cm in diameter, white or yellowish-white, four-membered, collected in 15-30 paniculate brushes, located in the leaf axils, fragrant. Blossoming in May-June. The fruit is an elongated oval drupe 1-4 cm long, 1-2 cm in diameter. The skin is green, dark purple when ripe, so the ripe olive fruit looks like a plum. Inside the fetus there is a large bone with a warty surface. Ripening occurs 3-4 months after flowering, in September-October. This culture begins to bloom 10 years after planting, bearing fruit - at the age of 20. Brings harvest 2 times a year. From one individual, 20-25 kg of fruits are obtained.
The European olive, like other types of olive, is a long-liver, its age can reach 2000 years. An olive tree grows in Athens, which has reached 2400 years. On the island of Crete there are trees planted during the Ancient Rome... In Russia, the oldest olives grow in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden. Their age is about 500 years. Trees are long-lived hollow leaves, often have a bizarre shape.
Growing European olive at home
The European olive is suitable for growing at home. In areas with a mild warm climate, this crop can grow outdoors. Under more severe climatic conditions, it is planted in a greenhouse, winter garden or any other warm, bright, spacious room. With proper and regular maintenance, the tree will thrive and produce crops.
Olive is light and moisture-loving, drought-resistant, withstands short-term frosts down to -10 ° С. Prefers lime-rich soil. Thanks to a powerful, highly branched root system, it successfully grows on stony-sandy soil and on rocks, withstands prolonged drought. The root system and trunk form a thickening - a neck that grows rapidly and gives numerous young shoots every year. These shoots must be removed in a timely manner so that the tree does not turn into a bush.
You can also grow European olive in a room, since it easily transfers dry air. However, to lay flower buds, that is, for further flowering, the plant needs a dormant period at a temperature of 5-8 ° C. The volume of watering at this time should be minimal, but without drying out the earthy coma.
Propagated by this culture and cuttings. Seed propagation is suitable when the tree is grown only for decorative purposes. Before sowing, the seeds are soaked in a 10% alkali solution for 12 hours to soften their dense shell, and it was easier for the sprouts to break through. After that, the seeds are washed in warm water, dried, and a small incision is made at the end of each of them.
The soil for sowing is prepared in advance. It should consist of leafy earth (1 part), coarse river sand (1 part), peat (0.5 part). In order for the soil to be sufficiently air and moisture permeable, small stones or crushed charcoal... Seeds are planted to a depth of 2 cm. Shoots will appear in 2-3 months.
European olive care and bonsai formation
Caring for the European olive consists in creating sufficient bright lighting, regular, moderate watering, and periodic fertilizing. Top dressing is applied in the spring-summer season once a week. For this, complex fertilizers with a high nitrogen content are used.
At home, they carry out a healing and shaping crown haircut. For this purpose, remove dry, weak, excess, too long branches and give the crown the desired shape.
For a long time, this culture has been grown mainly for the sake of obtaining fruits, which, after soaking and salting, acquire a pleasant taste and are used in the manufacture of various dishes.
Due to the irregular trunk, few branches, on which dense, spear-shaped leaves with a contrasting color scheme of the lower and upper sides are located, the European olive is ideal for the formation of bonsai.
In addition, the tree is grown for decorative purposes to decorate and give originality to garden plots and premises.