High Quality Olive Trees For Sale

New Zealand’s Best Olive Trees

Growing olives in your garden delivers a vast range of benefits:

• Reduced food waste
• Lower grocery costs
• Fewer food miles and less plastic packaging, decreasing your carbon footprint
• Convenience
• Children can learn the plants and become more involved with nature
• These plants will bring you pleasure for many years to come

From large Olive trees to small ones, we’ll help you find the right sized tree for your space. Our fruit trees have been selected to thrive in New Zealand’s climate. We stock only the highest quality plants, sourcing them from NZ’s leading nurseries. Each plant is packed and transported with extreme care, ensuring it arrives to you in the same condition it was in when it left the nursery. If you are wanting to buy Olive trees, shop with confidence from the best in the industry.

Common questions about growing Olives

1. What is the best olive tree to grow in NZ?

The best olive tree to grow in New Zealand depends on your specific location and growing conditions. However, some of the most popular and well-suited varieties include:

• Leccino: This Tuscan variety is a good all-rounder, producing both good oil and olives for eating. It is also relatively cold hardy, making it a good choice for cooler parts of New Zealand.
• Frantoio: This Italian variety is known for its high oil content and good flavour. It is also relatively disease resistant.
• Picual: This Spanish variety is one of the most widely grown olive varieties in the world. It is known for its high oil yield and its ability to tolerate drought conditions.
• Picholine: This French variety is known for its buttery flavour and its olives are often used for pickling. It is also relatively cold hardy.
• Pendolino: This Italian variety is a good pollinator for other olive trees. It is also a relatively fast grower and produces good yields of small olives.

When choosing a variety, it is important to consider your climate, soil type, and water availability. You should also consider whether you want to grow olives for oil, eating, or both.

2. Do you need two olive trees?

Whether or not you need two olive trees depends on the variety of olive tree you're growing. Many olive varieties are self-pollinating, meaning that they can produce fruit without the need for another tree. However, some varieties are self-sterile and require cross-pollination from another tree to produce fruit.

Most of the popular olive varieties are self-pollinating, which means that you only need to plant one tree to get fruit. However, if you want to increase your chances of a good harvest, you can plant two trees of different varieties. This will ensure that your trees cross-pollinate and produce more fruit.

3. How much does one olive tree produce?

The amount of olives an olive tree produces can vary depending on a number of factors, including the variety of olive tree, the age of the tree, the climate, and the growing conditions. However, on average, a mature olive tree can produce between 15 and 20 kilograms of olives per year.

The amount of olive oil that can be produced from this amount of olives will also vary depending on the variety of olive, but it is typically around 10 to 20 percent of the weight of the olives. So, a mature olive tree can produce between 3 and 4 litres of oil per year.

4. Why are olive trees expensive?

Olive trees are considered an expensive investment due to several factors:

1. Lengthy Growth Period: Olive trees are slow-growing plants. It takes several years for them to reach maturity and start producing olives. This time-consuming process drives up the cost of purchasing mature olive trees. Younger saplings are less expensive but will take longer to bear fruit.
2. Importation Costs: Olive trees are not native to many regions, particularly temperate climates. They are typically grown in Mediterranean regions with warm, dry climates. To obtain olive trees for cultivation in other parts of the world, they may need to be imported, incurring additional transportation and handling expenses.
3. Limited Availability: Demand for olive trees has increased in recent years, especially as more people seek to incorporate them into their gardens or landscaping. This growing demand has put pressure on supply, making olive trees more scarce and driving up their prices.
4. Variety and Selection: Olive trees come in a wide variety of cultivars, each with unique characteristics in terms of fruit size, oil content, flavor profile, and climate adaptability. This diversity in options leads to a range of price points, with more sought-after or exotic varieties commanding higher premiums.
5. Pruning and Shaping: Olive trees require regular pruning and shaping to maintain their desired form and encourage optimal fruit production. This ongoing care adds to the overall cost of owning and maintaining an olive tree.
6. Versatility and Symbolism: Olive trees hold deep cultural significance in many regions, representing peace, longevity, and prosperity. This symbolism adds to their perceived value and contributes to their higher price tags.

5. How much is a 1000 year old olive tree worth?

The value of a 1000-year-old olive tree can vary significantly depending on several factors, including its condition, size, location, and historical significance. However, in general, such trees can command very high prices, ranging from tens of thousands of dollars to even hundreds of thousands of dollars or more.

6. Are olive trees hard to keep alive?

Olive trees are not particularly hard to keep alive, but they do require some care and attention. They are well-adapted to Mediterranean climates with warm, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. In colder climates, they may need to be protected from heavy frost.

Here are some tips for keeping trees alive:

• Choose a sunny location with well-drained soil. Olive trees need at least six hours of sunlight per day. They also prefer soil that is well-drained.
• Water your olive tree regularly, especially during the first few years of its life. Once the tree is established, it will need less water and becomes largely drought tolerant.
• Fertilize your olive tree in the spring using a balanced fertilizer that is specifically formulated for olive trees.
• Prune your olive tree in the early spring to remove dead or diseased branches. Pruning will also help to shape the tree and encourage new growth.
• Protect your olive tree from frost if you live in a cold climate by covering it with a frost blanket.

With proper care, olive trees can live for hundreds of years. They are a beautiful and rewarding addition to any garden.

7. How quickly do olive trees grow?

Olive trees are slow-growing trees, and their growth rate can vary depending on a number of factors, including the variety of olive tree, the climate, and the growing conditions. However, on average, olive trees grow at a rate of 30-60 cm per year. This means that it can take a mature olive tree several decades to reach its full height of 6-9 metres.

8. Where is the best place to plant an olive tree?

The best place to plant an olive tree is in a sunny spot with well-drained soil. Olive trees are native to the Mediterranean region, so they thrive in hot, dry climates. They can tolerate some shade, but they will produce more olives if they are in full sun. Soil type is also important. Olive trees prefer sandy or gravelly soil that drains well. They do not tolerate heavy, clay soils.

Here are some additional tips for choosing a good planting site for your olive tree:

• Avoid planting near paved areas to avoid stains from fallen fruit.
• Plant your olive tree away from other trees and shrubs, so it has plenty of room to spread out.
• If you live in a cold climate, you may need to plant your olive tree in a protected and warm spot, such as near a north-facing wall.

9. Can you eat olives off the tree?

Olives are edible off the tree, but they are extremely bitter due to a compound called oleuropein. This compound is also responsible for the olive's astringent and puckery taste. To make them palatable, they need to be cured. This process removes the oleuropein and other bitter compounds, leaving the olives with their signature salty and savoury flavor.

There are many different ways to cure olives, but the most common methods involve water, salt, and lye. The curing process can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months, depending on the method used.

10. When should you not eat olives?

You should not eat olives if:

• They are moldy or soft. Moldy or soft olives are a sign of spoilage and should be discarded.
• They have a strange smell. Olives should have a slightly salty, savory smell. If they have a sour or off smell, do not eat them.
• They are discolored. Olives that are brown or black around the edges are likely spoiled.
• They are from an opened jar that has been sitting out for more than two weeks. Olives from an opened jar should be refrigerated and eaten within two weeks.
• You have any allergies to olives or other members of the olive family, such as ash trees or oleander.

Also, if you are following a low-sodium diet, you may want to limit your intake of olives, as they can be high in sodium.

11. Is an olive a fruit or a vegetable?

Olives are technically a fruit. They develop from the ovary of the olive tree flower and contain a single seed. However, olives are often classified as a vegetable because of their savory taste and culinary uses.