How to Care for Olive Trees

Series Summary

Landscaping the front or back yard doesn't have to be a professional job. Home gardens provide a tranquil area for reflection and relaxation. Tending to and enjoying a garden can lower blood pressure, ease anxiety and provide diversion in which to ponder various thoughts lingering in the subconscious. Even with limited yard space, planting a small corner garden is a simple task that can be completed in just an afternoon. In this free video series on gardening, an experienced sustainable gardener explains how to care for a variety of trees and plants. Get information on how to grow apple trees, plum trees and grape vines. Learn how to grow and care for hibiscus, lemon grass, echinacea and hollyhocks. Find out how to grow a California redwood and palm trees, all with the help of these free videos.

Video Transcript

"Hi, this is Yolanda Vanveen, and in this segment we're going to talk about how to take care of olive trees. Now olive trees are beautiful trees that grow in full sun and they have a nice, light green color to the foliage so they're just beautiful in the garden. And they grow really well in many different conditions. But when I'm growing plants I always consider their native areas. Olive trees are native to the Mediterranean area of Europe, so the very southern area of Europe along the Mediterranean Sea. So they like really hot summers. And lots of moisture because they're near the ocean in the winter. So they still have a little bit of a wet season. But then they dry out completely in between. They grow really well in California, 'cause it's very similar temperatures and very similar conditions, and they supply most of the world with their olives. So when you're growing your olive tree, make sure that it's a full sunny spot and it has really good drainage. And grow it just like any other fruit tree. But make sure that you dry them out in between watering them. And when they're first coming up, too, you can buy them by the root or start them by seed, when they first come up they'll have one main stem and it'll get really full. But to train it really well make sure you have one main stem but at least two side stems. And cut out all of the other branches so that it doesn't grow so lanky and it'll mature really well in the future. And that way if you have the three main stems coming up you'll have a lush, gorgeous tree that'll produce fruit in anywhere from three to ten years."