Oliva, or Olea 



The lanceolate and pointed leaves at once dis- 

 tinguish our tree from the oleaster, and the heaviness 

 of the under-surface does not disappear with age as 

 it does in the wild form. The panicles of small 

 white blossoms appear in August. The green fruit 

 ripens into black, and the first gathering is late in 

 November. There was, however, one variety which 

 was gathered unripe to provide green oil for salads. 

 It was harvested in September. 



In Italy the tree broke into varieties, of which 

 Virgil selects three for his verse {Ge. ii. 86). Cato 

 names ten and Columella ten or possibly eleven, 

 each list including Virgil's three. The kind called 

 1 orchites,' which Virgil for the convenience of his 

 verse calls 'orchades,' bears a title like that which 

 Queen Gertrude's liberal shepherds gave to the long 

 purples, and in shape it must have resembled the 

 tuber of an orchid. On its qualities Pliny and 

 Columella are at issue, the one holding that it gave 

 abundant oil and the other that it was fit only for 

 eating. Martyn seems to err in identifying it with 

 the modern ' olivola/ which is small and round. 

 The kind called ' radius,' from its resemblance to 

 a weaver's shuttle, is still known as 'raggaria,' an 

 oblong olive, producing a very sweet oil, but in small 

 quantities. The third kind was called ' pausia,' or 

 in the popular speech ' posea,' a name of which the 

 derivation does not appear. This was the kind that 

 gave the green oil. Virgil does not mention the kind 

 called ' Sergia,' which produced the largest amount 

 of oil. It was named after a member of the house 



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