Small white or slightly yellowish flowers with a pleasant delicate aroma appear by mid-June. In indoor conditions, this process takes several months. Insects or wind pollinate the olive, but if the weather is calm, the branches are shaken daily. With self-pollination, the fruits are tied in different sizes, and cross-pollination improves both the quality of the fruits and the yield. In indoor conditions, the olive produces about 2 kg of olives, and in the garden – up to 20 kg.
Olive flower
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The olive tree is very drought-resistant, but if there is no growth of branches, this is a clear sign of a lack of moisture. In addition, the plant is photophilous (with a lack of light, branches begin to bare), does not tolerate swampy and acidic soils. Liming significantly increases yields.
You can propagate the olive by cuttings, grafting or seeds. Before planting, the seeds are kept for 16-18 hours in a 10% solution of alkali (caustic soda), then rinsed and the “nose” of the bone is cut with a secateurs. They are planted to a depth of 2-3 cm. The sprouts appear in 2-3 months.
Young olive tree
When the olive is propagated by grafting, the budding of the wild is done with a sprouting eye (you can also use a cuttings) into the split or into the butt under the bark. The first olives can be tasted in 8-10 years.
For cuttings, 2-4-year-old cut branches with a diameter of 3-4 cm are taken, the cuts are covered with garden pitch and buried horizontally in the sand in March to a depth of ten cm.Since there are many dormant buds on these cuttings, shoots appear in a month. Cuttings, before planting, are cultivated with a growth stimulant. In the future, they try to maintain the most favorable regime: a temperature of 20-25 degrees, sufficient lighting, but without direct sunlight. To maintain high humidity, the box with cuttings is covered with glass or foil. Spray (do not watered!) With water at room temperature once a day. Such cuttings are transplanted after 2-4 months. They begin to bear fruit in the 2-3rd year.
Foliage and fruit of the olive
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The best time to plant in regions with mild winters is autumn. By spring, the plants take root and grow. When feeding the tree with manure (especially mullein), I must add 200 g of superphosphate so that the soil does not oxidize. Lime soil in spring.
The main crop is formed on the growth of the past year, therefore, when pruning, I remove only old and unproductive branches. It is better to do this in March, before the start of sap flow. I give the tree a goblet shape – this greatly increases the yield. In indoor conditions, the height of the tree is limited to 60-80 cm.
Olive Tree
Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Nevit Dilmen
