Olive Tree Care And Maintenance
The care and feeding of olive trees.
Olive tree care and maintenance. If growing an olive tree on heavy clay soil you should dig in plenty of gravel to prevent waterlogging the roots. Their biggest bloom happens in the spring and summer but they also bloom intermittently throughout the year even in the final days of fall. In winter reduce watering but don t let the compost dry out completely. It is best to remove infected branches and even whole trees if need be.
During the growing season keep the compost moist and feed with a balanced liquid fertiliser such as phostrogen every month. Nourish the ground around the trees and cut the grass. Olive trees are native to the mediterranean so they can tolerate dry air. Annual pruning is recommended at the end of winter or at the beginning of spring.
This phase more or less extends from may to july. Most won t need any additional humidity in your home. Avoid sites where water stands during rainy periods or where ground water seeps into a hole two feet deep. Potted olive trees prefer light pruning yearly instead of severe pruning every two or three years.
The new southern living garden book describes the stats of the evergreen shrub this way long a favorite of southern gardeners tea olive is broad dense compact. Olive trees prefer light pruning to severe pruning. Feed the tree once a month in fall and winter with a balanced houseplant fertilizer. The cycle of work that goes on in the groves is the same each year naturally.
It needs regular watering to thrive. Do not however confuse the olive for a desert plant. Fungal diseases are especially common and care must be taken not to use infected shears when pruning. Once you begin to see a quantity of new growth feed the olive tree with nitrogen rich compost conventional fertilizer or concentrated organic.
Olive trees grow slowly especially in fall and winter so avoid overwatering. But if you must drastically reduce branches do so in fall if freezing is rare in your area and in spring elsewhere. Olive tree care once your new olive tree is planted it is a good idea to provide drip irrigation as the tree will need water every day especially during the summer months throughout its first year. Olive trees require a well drained soil and a sunny position.
Harvest the olives for pressing into olive oil or for curing in jars. Although they can cope with dry periods olives in containers need regular watering and feeding to produce fruit. Grows at a moderate rate to 15 feet tall and 8 10 feet wide though older plants may. Olive trees are known for being extremely drought tolerant and thriving in poor and stony soils but it s important to avoid allowing the soil to parch completely.
With just a little bit of care and maintenance the olive tree can thrive for centuries. The olive trees rest they recharge they produce flowers then fruit. Prune and shape the olive trees. Pruning olive trees is recommended yearly at the end of the winter beginning of spring.