making more olive trees?

I have three olive trees.  One lives in a sheltered spot and thrived there for 5 years.  The other two we planted last year in what is the least hospitable part of the farm.  They are very exposed, aren't thriving, but survived a massively hard winter and a massively hot and dry summer with no help from us.  So I think they will start thriving once the weather changes.  This proves what I suspected - yes, I can grow olive trees in Canada.  None of them have made olives yet, but the sheltered one makes flowers now.  I wasn't sure if they needed a different kind to pollinate or could self-pollinate or what, so they are three different varieties.  I'll look it up one day.  But for now, the challenge is...

...I want thirty more olive trees.



It's the right time of year to take semi-hardwood cuttings.  But what conditions should I grow them?  Cosseted in pots in the house or directly placed in their final resting place?  Somewhere in between?  I figure that my usual strike rate for cuttings is about 50% of what the official one is due to excessive neglect on my part.  If I take 100 cuttings, I should get 30 trees.   I think I'll try a variety of locations, but what ones?  Any thoughts?  Experiences?  Recommendations?  

Do you know what variety these olive trees are?

Did you get them from a nursery?

I have tried olives here in Maine, and they did not survive. I am in zone 4/5. I am very interested in growing olives, but only if they are hardy varieties.

Good luck

They had labels with different varieties on them.  I lost those as my thought is they would die.

We're somewhere between zone 8 and 9 here with a strong Mediterranian climate (summers have no rain, winters have too much).

My friend who helped his father grow olives in the middle east, in a much harsher environment than here, said they take advantage of the contours of the land to find naturally sheltered spots for the olives to grow, that way they can survive harsh winters.  I would love to learn more about this.

Hello r,
I have grown olives here in Portland in a couple of different places. Very similar climate. I think we're a bit hotter in the summer.

Once they have survived one year I don't worry about them in the summer, because I think we'll never get as hot or dry as Southern Italy or Greece.  I have mostly planted them for good drainage, because as you know, plants often die here from diseases in the cold/wet rather than just pure cold, because it just doesn't get that cold.

At my old house, mine flowered and made olives, but now I am growing them for the leaves.  Olive leaf extract is supposed to be spectacular medicine. I hope to make tincture and glycerite from them once they grow up.  

John S
PDX OR

Here's an article on growing olives in cooler climates, but it leans more towards people doing it for profit. Cool Weather Olives -- Micro-EcoFarming

Galen Young wrote:Do you know what variety these olive trees are?

Did you get them from a nursery?

I have tried olives here in Maine, and they did not survive. I am in zone 4/5. I am very interested in growing olives, but only if they are hardy varieties.

Good luck

Hi Galan, I'm in zone 5 Maine and just ate my first "olives" that I brined from my 'Yellow' cornelian cherry tree (Cornus mas).  While they are still early in the brining process I can tell you that they are impressive olive imposters.  I will be making these forever now.  I waited until the fruit just began to soften before picking.  Try it out!!!
Cheers, Greg

Galen Young wrote:Do you know what variety these olive trees are?

Did you get them from a nursery?

I have tried olives here in Maine, and they did not survive. I am in zone 4/5. I am very interested in growing olives, but only if they are hardy varieties.

Good luck

Hi Galen,

I'm in zone 5 Maine and this year made a batch of "olives" from my 'Yellow' cornelian cherry (Cornus mas).  I picked them when they just started to soften and brined them.  They're early in the process, but quite convincing.  I'll be making these from now on.  In fact, I have a small olive tree, but I'm going to be getting rid of it since the brined cornelian cherries are so good!  Give it a shot.

Cheers,
Greg

We have been eating cornus mas/Cornelian cherries for decades. They are a well known nutraceutical in Europe. We freeze most of them and save them for winter when we have a cold or the flu. Many of our sicknesses have been wiped out by eating them at first sign of sore throat, etc.  They are very high in vitamin C.  They are a small tree and very productive.
JohN S
PDX OR

I too have olives on my property.  There are several that are more than twenty years old.   Some have been planted more recently.   I'm in far north California in zone 8 with the most Mediterranean climate I can imagine.  There are five manzanillo and two sevillano trees to my knowledge.  Some of the others I'm not sure exactly what they are.  Some have never produced at all and are candidates for grafting, others are more prolific and reliable.

I don't have experience with olives, but I did look into them a bit a couple years ago before realising I just didn't have the time to set anything up for them.

You probably have already seen the Saturna Olive Consortium site, www.olives.ca
There's also www.oregonolivetrees.com, which seems to be under construction at the moment

Someone in the Okanagan tried growing them in Kaleden.  They lasted two years, then died the next winter.  He thinks it was the cold, dry wind; and possibly the trees were more sensitive due to their immaturity.  I have a little bit of email correspondence with a couple people I can pm to you if you'd like.  It's mostly general information, though.

I've heard it suggested to treat olive cuttings the same as grape cuttings, if that helps at all.

I have been wondering if olives would be possible in Vernon, BC/North Okanagan, seems I have another experiment to add to the list! Thanks to everyone who shared these resources.

I am currently growing an olive tree for the medicinal quality of its leaves.  Frantoio was the variety suggested for my area and it is doing reasonably well.
John S
PDX OR

Mahlon Barrault wrote:I have been wondering if olives would be possible in Vernon, BC/North Okanagan, ...

+1, interested and watching. I know some folks who just moved out there.

Since not everyone is familiar with every location, I would post your typical climate, with highs and lows for the year(C and F), zones, amount of rain, etc.  There will probably who can speak to the topic, even if they don't know where your town is.
John S
PDX OR