How to give a balcony, terrace or garden a Mediterranean flair? Bet on the olive tree! One of the oldest cultivated plants catches the eye at first glance with its silvery color and the spirit of the southern regions.
European olive tree (Olea europaea) is a very slow-growing evergreen tree. The oldest specimens of bizarre shapes have been decorating the landscape for hundreds to thousands of years. A sprawling crown grows from a relatively short trunk, and the entire tree reaches a height of up to 15 meters. Narrow lanceolate leaves with a characteristic grey-green color grow on the thorny branches.
It is thanks to their specific coloring that olive is represented on the color scale. On the reverse, the leaves are colored silver. Even in the slightest breeze, the olive tree creates an interesting spectacle with the change of two colors. It blooms with small whitish flowers that smell sweet. The fruits are drupes – well-known olives that ripen from the end of October to the end of the year.
How to care for an olive tree in a pot and how to grow it outdoors in the soil?
Do you want to grow an olive tree at home? The safest thing is to place it in a flowerpot, however, due to the increasingly mild winters, even in our conditions, people grow it in the open ground (especially in warmer areas when planting an already grown or older tree). Here are some tips that will come in handy when caring for this plant.
- The olive tree requires plenty of fresh air. It can also be in a windy place.
- You can grow it at home as long as you provide suitable conditions. It is very suitable for cultivation like bonsaibecause after a few years it takes the form of an old tree.
- The soil should be lighter sandy loam, it can also be slightly alkaline.
- He hates being overwatered soil and moist air.
- During the growing season, water it moderately, in winter just enough so that the soil does not dry out completely.
- Older outdoor olive trees you hardly need to water, watering is suitable during an extremely long dry summer and in frost-free weather after a long-lasting drought (winter without rain or snow).
- In winter they need dry cool and fresh air, otherwise they wouldn’t bud. Transfer the olive trees in containers to a cool, bright room with a temperature of around 10 to 15 °C, they can tolerate wintering in a heated space, if they have dry air, which is not a problem with the current heating method, rather the opposite.
- In open ground they can withstand frost down to -10 °C, then there is a risk of frostbite. Older olive trees can withstand a harsh winter (mostly only with the loss of some younger shoots). It is advisable to spread a layer of earth around the stem, and in small trees to cover the crown with pine needles.
- I’m cutting you can partially shape the tree in spring or autumn, but at the expense of the next flowering. Flower buds do not form on new shoots.
If you get a bisexual plant or two plants of different varieties, you will be rewarded with small fruits in the summer after the flowering period. Compared to olives from southern regions, they cannot be compared in size, let alone in taste, but they look lovely on the tree. In our conditions, olive trees thus remain an ornamental exotic tree.
Do you know olives?
The fruits of the olive tree are used for the production of the highest quality oil with a distinct aroma and taste and for pickling. Olives benefit our health – they contain vitamins A, B1B2PP, calcium, proteins, sugars and organic acids. The cosmetic industry uses oleuropein, belonging to the so-called antioxidants. It is obtained from the leaves, supports the formation of collagen, accelerates the metabolism in the cells and strengthens the skin. It is often included in anti-aging skin creams.
Green olives – unripe fruits are most often pickled only in salt, which releases the juice. In some countries, they are pickled in salty, vinegar and sweet pickles.
Black olives – these are ripe fruits that are stored in the same way, but they are mainly raw material for the production of olive oil of different quality levels.
The best quality extra virgin oil (referred to as extra virgin), is obtained from the olives simply by spontaneous drainage, which is sometimes assisted by their loading. It is valued for its high content of unsaturated fatty acids, which are involved in the protection of cell membranes and the vascular system.
Medium quality is referred to not quite correctly as virgin, is cold pressed from olives using only medium pressure. Due to the effect of higher pressure and heat, the lowest quality oil is obtained in the third stage, which is further refined or used only for technical purposes.
Pickled olives are intended for direct consumption, in salads and as a seasoning for cooked meals. Virgin olive oil is used chilled in salads. You can fry in lower quality oil.
