FRUITS AND NUTS 107 



Olea europ&a. The olive is cultivated chiefly around the Medi- 

 terranan, particularly in Asia Minor, North Africa, Turkey, 

 Greece, Austria, Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal. It has 

 been introduced and cultivated on a small scale in nearly all 

 subtropical and tropical countries, but aside from the Mediter- 

 ranean region California is the only district in which olive 

 production has been developed on a commercial scale. The 

 United States imported 5,000,000 pounds of olives in 1914 and 

 8,000,000 gallons of olive oil. This indicates the increasing 

 favor with which olives are treated in the United States. 



The olive is an evergreen tree with narrow, lanceolate, leath- 

 ery leaves, small white fragrant flowers and a spherical or 

 ovate fruit which is bluish-black when ripe. The olive is J4 

 to I inch in diameter and has a hard pit. The olive is easily 

 propagated by cuttings or layers as well as by seed. Old 

 trees may be easily improved by budding or grafting. The 

 olive seldom fruits in Ceylon or Hawaii, although the trees 

 reach a large size and show the usual vigor of growth in these 

 countries. The reason for their sterility is not understood. 

 Like citrus fruit the olive is not strictly a tropical plant, but will 

 endure a temperature of 20 F. or in the case of some varieties 

 even a temperature of 14 F. Such temperatures, however, 

 cause injury unless the trees are in the most dormant condi- 

 tion. The olive tree lives to a great age. There are trees in 

 Palestine which are said to be 500 to 1,000 years old. Wild 

 trees, if not cultivated, bear only every 2 or 3 years. 



Olive trees reach a height of about 40 feet and have a 

 rounded, dense, and graceful head. The strongest, heaviest 

 bearing and longest lived olive trees are those which are grown 

 from seed. It should be remembered, too, that olive fruit is 

 always borne on 2-year-old wood and that the same wood never 

 bears twice. It is necessary, therefore, to maintain a good 

 growth of new wood every year. 



In California the olive region corresponds quite closely with 

 that of the raisin grape. The tree appears to thrive on any 



