How to Grow and Care Olive

Olive is a drought-tolerant evergreen tree with shimmering silvery foliage that love to bask in a warm, sunny and sheltered position. The foliage of olive is an awesome landscape addition as it has, overall, a very attractive silvery appearance. It is easy to grow in the UK but encouraging them to fruit is a different matter. Whether you want to grow them in the ground or in a large container, they will add an instant touch of the Mediterranean. Sometimes in the hot summers and southern gardens. Reward you with a crop of attractive-looking fruit that need special preparation to make them edible.

How to Grow

Grow your olives in free-draining soil or compost in a sheltered, sunny site. Olive trees lend themselves well to grow in pots as they do best in free-draining soils. It can benefit from being moved to your porch or other sheltered spot for winter. Choose a sunniest and most sheltered spot available, a south-facing spot with a brick wall behind it will work well. Use a loam-based peat-free compost and add a few handfuls of horticultural grit to aid drainage.

Plant the olives in 30-35cm pots filled with gritty, loam-based compost, mixing in some controlled release fertilizer granules. You’ll still need to water and feed the olive tree regularly through the warmer months, as the roots don’t have as much space to search for water and nutrients. You may need to move the potted olive tree to a sheltered spot for winter, or use horticultural fleece to wrap around the canopy to protect it from frost.

Care

Olive trees are fairly drought tolerant plant, but if they’re growing in pots, they need to be kept watered. Dry spells during early spring can affect the flowering and fruiting, so if you want to grow a crop of olives be particularly watchful.

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