Welcome to The Herb Cottage

Olive Trees

Olive branchOlive Orchards are being planted in the Texas Hill Country, Central Texas and in East Texas. The burgeoning Olive Oil Industry is very exciting for Texas agriculture.

But, Olive Trees are not just for large orchard plantings. They make great landscape plants for the yard or garden. Olive Trees are drought tolerant, evergreen and produce olives you can cure for your own eating pleasure.

Olive Trees are an attractive addition to the landscape or orchard. The trees grow to 15 - 20 feet tall, have a weeping form with grayish green leaves that catch the wind beautifully.

Growing Olive Trees

Olive Trees are easy to grow with just a few requirements that are easily met.

  • Full Sun- at least 6 hours a day
  • Good Drainage- if you have heavy, clay soil that is found in many parts of Texas and other areas, you can still grow an Olive Tree with one of the following methods:

  • Amend the soil with compost or other organic matter to loosen the soil.
  • Plant on a slope so the water drains away quickly.
  • Grow your Olive Tree as a potted specimen. Your tree will thrive, bloom and produce olives.


    • Cold Hardiness

    Minimum winter temperatures should not fall below 22-25F for long periods of time (green fruit will be damaged at 32F), but average winter temperatures above 50F will inhibit fruiting. Plant in fall or early spring to establish before the heat of a Southern summer. Areas with colder winters should plant in Spring.

    Saplings

    I offer Arbequina variety. This is a Spanish variety with good production, suitable for both eating and olive oil. The plants shipped to you are in deep 4" pots and are around 3' tall at this time. They are between 16-24 months old and ready to pot into a larger container or in the ground.



    Olive Sapling

    Price:

    $18.00 per tree, plus shipping. Growing and Planting Instructions included.

    Shipping Costs:
  • 1 Tree: $10.00
  • 2 Trees: $15.00
  • 3 Tree: $20.00
  • For larger orders please contact The Herb Cottage for shipping rates.


    • 1 Olive Tree

    2 Olive Trees

    3 Olive Trees

    NOTE

    The fruit of the Olive Tree is inedible as it comes off the tree. Olives need to be cured before they are edible. There are different ways to cure olives depending on whether you pick them green or leave them on the tree to ripen and turn black.

    Follow the links below to learn how to cure olives.

  • Anzonini's Water-cured Green Olives Recipe- this is the one I've personally tried with great success!!

  • Lye-Cured Green Olives Recipe

  • Salt-Cured Ripe Olives Recipe

  • Greek-Style Ripe Olives Recipe

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