Pruning Olive Branches

Things you need to effectively prune an olive tree are: a saw, clippers, electric clippers, a ladder, boots, sun glasses, fire starters, a lighter and sunshine! Oh, and for me... my allergy medication!

Olive trees are practically indestructible but need to be pruned regularly to maintain the correct shape. The correct shape of the tree allows the olives to grow and ripen properly and for ease in harvesting. The best olive tree shape keeps the inside of the tree bare and has only the branches that are curving outward. If branches are growing directly up, down or toward the inside they should be clipped. Each major trunk of the tree should only have 4-5 branches growing off it. And it should not be too tall. Of course I will always need a ladder but many of the branches should be easily reachable by most normal people, with the ladder being used only for the highest stuff. 

Also you want to be sure the higher branches are not too large or extend too long or else they will shade the rest of the tree too much and the other olives below will not have access to as much sunlight. The goal is to have the interior of the tree so open that a bird could fly through.

When finished clipping the branches, the burning process begins! Let me just tell you that fire making is truly an art! Especially when the branches are wet with fog and dew from the night before. Even though I collected branches and burned them all week, I never quite got as adept at getting it started. PJ however is a true fire master! You can't be afraid to add a lot of leaf-filled branches at first and then when you see the flame come up, add a bunch more, with a lot of weight. 

We made lovely bon fires in the middle of the grove, near the road, where ever we wanted! It was great- the smell reminds me of camping, the heat was much appreciated and making fire is always fun. The only thing that was not so great were the small burn holes now in my rain coat too. I need a thick cotton jacket instead of all my synthetic Colorado stuff that is light and easily packable. Funny. 

For the most part, olive tree pruning is very rewarding because you can see the tree take shape and become cleaner and neater. The scariest part is collecting the branches near the base, as there could be a snake, though I never encountered one (thank goodness!). Also being on the ladder, with muddy boots is  a bit scary, especially when sawing high branches and having uneven footing. I left this work to PJ and just focused on being a good branch collector, hauler, and fire girl. It worked out well for both of us.