Olea Europaea - tips please

MartyB

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Hello,

I was given this by someone who knows it has always been an ideal of mine to grow an olive tree as my father living in the Mediterranean has a dozen or so full grown, magnificent trees. When I go visit I am always smitten by them. In any case this one I now have is a first-year cutting, the mother tree is grown locally, 6 or 8 feet tall and fruiting apparently.

As can be (hopefully) seen by the pictures, its about 4.5 inches high and branches laterally at that height. I am looking to grow this as much as possible and hopefully, within a decade(?) I start to have a decent looking tree. What can I do in the future to help it grow vertically? Second picture I brought it inside to get a less busy background to see a bit better how the branches are currently growing.

I am currently living in what I believe to be 5a/5b zone, so summers can get hot and humid but winters are dreadfully cold on occasion so I am lining up a suitable winterizing home. My question is related to when to prune, how and where, in order to hopefully have some upward motion on this trunk and find the potential it can have.

chopsticks are currently being used as tutors to help with the light winds we sometimes get. I bring sheltered spot when winds get bad.

thanks in advance!
 

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MartyB

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Hi MartyB
http://www.bonsaiempire.com/images/advanced/tony/olive-april-1500.jpeg
Have you thought of a semi cascade style? It is already looking that way.
Cheers

well, I haven't really thought of any style since the trunk is pencil-thick :) that glorious specimen you posted a pic of must be 20-30yrs (or more?) old. For now I just want to get as much girth as I can over a few years before I start looking at it in terms of bonsai. Right now its just my baby :)

any tips on what season to prune, and where, to help the trunk get thicker, and hopefully also have some upwards motion?
 

barrosinc

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at this stage do not prune and let it grow.
Any chance you could buy something a bit thicker for the meantime?
 

Ironbeaver

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Wouldn't now be a good time to wire the trunk for some movement? Just no "S" bends.
 

MartyB

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at this stage do not prune and let it grow.
Any chance you could buy something a bit thicker for the meantime?

well I have been surfing google for a few days to try and find a nursery that will ship. They are grown in the ground in some areas of British Columbia (thank you climate change....lol) but they are rare as heck here in Quebec since there is no context where you can leave it outside all year. I am just happy I was given this one in truth. I am not desperate to prune it, I just want to understand what I can do other than providing it with a good growing environment in order to maximize the growth. I am patient but I am in my 40s so hopefully I have a nice olive before retirement :)
 

Geo

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Have you researched how well this species will do under lights? Where you live it is going to have to spend a substantial portion of the year under them, as you intimated.
 

MartyB

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Have you researched how well this species will do under lights? Where you live it is going to have to spend a substantial portion of the year under them, as you intimated.

indeed. the parent plant has been kept indoors for the last 8 winters under artificial lighting.
 

JudyB

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I have one that I keep inside in the winter, it's an easy tree. It grows nicely all winter long. Larger leaves than the summer ones though.
 

MartyB

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I have one that I keep inside in the winter, it's an easy tree. It grows nicely all winter long. Larger leaves than the summer ones though.

the leaf size is to be expected I suppose. Do they fall off once you bring it outside in the spring?
 

JudyB

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No, I remove the largest ones, most don't get super huge, just a few.
 

Jaberwky17

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I have one that I keep inside in the winter, it's an easy tree. It grows nicely all winter long. Larger leaves than the summer ones though.
Judy, what kind (size, wattage, lumens) of light do you use for yours indoors?
 

JudyB

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Regular old shop florescent lights, no special bulbs. It also is sited in a south facing window, so gets some natural light (when we have any in winter).
 

Adair M

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Regular old shop florescent lights, no special bulbs. It also is sited in a south facing window, so gets some natural light (when we have any in winter).
Judy,

Do you keep it kinda dry during the winter?
 

JudyB

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Not any more than in summer. It's a super easy tree. If you keep it in some sort of cold storage (not freezing, but not inside) you'll want to keep it drier. The combo of cold wet roots are what they despise.
 
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