The olive tree plays an important role in various national cultures, is a universally recognized symbol of peace, longevity and prosperity. It has been known to people since ancient times. In Greece and other countries of the Mediterranean, it has been cultivated for many millennia. In honor of the olive, or olive, the botanical family was named, which also includes jasmine and ash. Of the 35 species, the most popular is European olive.
Olive is a relict tree that was started to be cultivated in the Stone Age for the sake of obtaining fruits.. The favorable warm and humid climate of the "cradle of civilization", as the Mediterranean is called, contributed to its spread. Cultivars were bred in ancient times, there are almost no wild varieties left. Olives are grown in Greece, Spain, southern Italy, Turkey, Iran, northern Africa, on the Black Sea coast of Russia. She was introduced to South America and Mexico.
Botanical Description
At a young age, olives are low-growing thin-trunked trees or shrubs not exceeding 4–5 m. The bark is dark gray, furrowed, rather thick. The shoots are elongated, the crown is narrow and rare.
Olive leaves are simple, leathery, narrow-lanceolate, elongated, with pointed ends and solid edges. On the shoots they are opposite. The upper part is bluish-green, with thin veins, the back is silver. In winter, the leaves do not fall, the renewal is gradual, they live about 3 years.
The flowers are axillary, unisexual, light yellow or cream, about 4–6 mm, collected in panicle elongated brushes of 10–40 pieces. They bloom in early April, the duration of flowering is 2-3 months, depending on the region of growth. At this time, the trees emit a very delicate aroma. After pollination, which occurs crosswise or with the help of the wind, the fruits are set, which are rounded drupes resembling small plums in shape. Their size is from 1 to 4 cm. The surface at different stages of maturity has a color from light green to brown, purple or almost black. Sometimes thin skin is covered with a waxy coating. The fruits are called olives, or olives. Inside them there is a large hard furrowed bone surrounded by pulp. In favorable conditions, trees bear fruit twice a year from 15–20 years of age.
As the plants grow older, they expand in breadth: trunks increase in diameter, shoots thicken, the crown takes on a spherical shape. They can reach a height of 12 m. The root system of adult trees also grows, becomes branched and powerful. The ends of the roots are sensitive to mineral compounds, which is typical for most sclerophyte plants. This allows trees to grow on steep slopes, in mountainous areas, and poor rocky soils. Powerful roots strengthen the crumbling soil, so olives are often planted where there is a risk of landslides.
Growth and Life
The lifespan of olive trees reaches 1000 years. In the old specimens, wide hollows are formed, the trunks are bent, become bulky. At the same time, fruiting can be preserved if it is sufficient to periodically trim old obsolete shoots. Then after some time young branches form on the trees.
Most of the year, soil moisture does not play an important role for these plants.. However, the moisture deficit before flowering negatively affects the quantity and quality of the future crop. In addition, the distance of plantings of olives from the sea matters. It turned out that in the depths of the continent, without moist oceanic air, they wither and cease to bear fruit even under favorable climatic conditions.
Olives are thermophilic plants. The minimum temperature that they can tolerate is 7 ° C. Short-term frosts up to -10–12 ° С can also survive trees. With more severe cold, they freeze. The ideal temperature for growth and development is about 15–20 ° С.
Tree use
Olive wood is decorative, has high technical characteristics. Its greenish yellow color is very popular. Olive color is a classic, widely used in the decoration of rooms and fabrics around the world. Olives are not straight, have many lateral branches. Sluggish areas, the impossibility of making flat boards make wood unsuitable in the construction industry. But high strength, density, hardness, durability, as well as a unique natural pattern make it possible to use it for the production of furniture, various carpentry, small wooden parts, souvenirs, inlays.
Of particular value are the fruits. They contain:
- vitamins B, C, A, E;
- organic acids;
- saponins;
- potassium, phosphorus, iron;
Olive oil
Olives are used to produce vegetable oil, which has nutritional and medicinal properties. WHO recommends using it daily.
The Mediterranean diet is considered one of the best in the world.. This is a considerable merit of olive oil. It interferes with the synthesis of bad cholesterol, ensures the elasticity of blood vessels, slows down aging, supports metabolic processes, and prevents cancer.
On the basis of this vegetable fat, produced at the Pancake week factories, soap is brewed and various cleaning products are released. In cosmetology and the pharmaceutical industry, it is used for the manufacture of preparations for skin care, treatment of the digestive tract.
The raw material for obtaining edible and medical oil is the flesh of olives, while the technical is squeezed out of the seeds. In various varieties of fruits, it contains from 30 to 80%. The most saturated belong to the oil group. Less fat combination used in cooking and canned after pre-soaking in saline. Despite all the benefits, it is impossible to eat them raw because of the bitter and astringent taste. However, special table olives with less bitterness are consumed without pre-treatment with brine.
Olive leaves are also saturated with beneficial substances.. They include oleuropein, elenolide. There are healing bitterness, phytoncides, tannins, tannins, ethers in the greenery. Extract from olive leaves has an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effect, it is included in the composition of preparations for treating skin infections. The broth reduces blood pressure, prevents the development of cardiovascular disease.
Growing at home
Olive does not grow in open ground in places with a temperate or continental climate. The tree can not stand severe frosts, will die in the first year. To breed it under such conditions is possible only as a greenhouse or indoor bonsai culture.
Home olive - low, up to 2 m, a tree with a round, dense crown. It can also be grown as a potted plant. It is bred mainly as a decoration, but it is possible to obtain fruits by grafting the branches of adult cultures to the young.
Ready-made seedlings of olive trees are sold in specialized shopping centers. Their cost varies from 2500 to 7000 rubles and depends on age and ability to bear fruit.
You can try to sprout olives from the seeds if they were taken from fresh ripe fruits, and not from canned food. Before planting in the soil, it is recommended to stratify the seeds, i.e. keep in a cool place at a temperature of about 3-5 ° C for 2 months. The material thus prepared is soaked in warm water with caustic or ordinary baking soda for 12 hours. Then it is placed in small pots with a substrate of garden soil, leaf humus, peat and sand to a depth of 1-2 cm. In this case, the soil should be well drained. Bones should not be planted in large containers, there they will grow in breadths in and out, and sprouts will not sprout for a long time.. The soil must be moistened, covered with cellophane, providing greenhouse conditions, and put in a well-lit place. It is advisable to plant several seeds at once, since germination is about 50%.
Seeds germinate within 50-60 days. Young shoots need to be placed in a well-lit place, in the winter lighting will be required. The ambient temperature should be about 22-24 ° C. It is required to regularly moisten and loosen the soil. At the age of 4-5 months, the plants are carefully transplanted into larger pots. The next transplant will be required after 2 years. You should not neglect this, because over time, the roots fill all the free space in the dishes.
It will take at least 10 years to wait for a tree grown from seed to become an adult and begin to form olives.. Olives bought or planted by cuttings form fruits 4 years after planting. Sections of shoots about 30 cm long with several leaves are treated with phytohormones and buried by 7-10 cm in a mixture of humus and peat. For several days they cover with a large can. Shoots take root in 2-3 months. After that, they are transferred to permanent pots.
Care
Caring for olive trees is uncomplicated, but you need to monitor the degree of illumination, control the soil moisture, pay attention to the condition of the leaves. This will not miss the onset of the disease.
Watering is necessary every 3 days. As you grow older in the summer you have to irrigate the crown with water. Humidity should be at least 80%. In the warm season, it is useful to take olives in the open air. In winter, watering is reduced to 1 time per week, and the temperature is reduced to 13 ° C.
Fertilizers are applied throughout the growing season, i.e. from March to October. On average, 1 feeding in 2 weeks is enough. Useful aqueous solution of superphosphate, liquid organics.
When planting buds, plant care should be especially careful. For pollination and getting an ovary, it is recommended to shake the branches slightly or to direct a stream of air from a hair dryer on them.
Concerning cropping, opinions differ. If the olive is intended for obtaining fruits, then care must be taken with the haircut, since olives are formed only on shoots no younger than 2 years old. Ornamental plants can be shortened, giving the branches the desired shape. Weak and drying processes are removed in any case.
In case of excessive heat, dryness or waterlogging, the olive discards leaves or twists them. Nutrient deficiency in closed ground can cause a slowdown in its development.