Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
26
Olives and Olive Oil
Lourdes Gallardo-Guerrero, Beatriz Gandul-Rojas, Marıa Isabel
Mınguez-Mosquera and Marıa Roca
45 C in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, in
Mediterranean-type climate areas with warm dry summers
and prolonged solar exposure. It is very resistant to drought
and to temperatures as low as 10 C, and it is very tolerant
of alkaline and salty soil.
The olive tree grows slowly over a long period of time
to a height between two and ten meters (6.5 and 32.8 ft).
It has a broad crown with a thick, twisted and often very
short trunk. Its leaves are perennial and lanceolate, mea-
suring between two and eight cm (0.79 and 3.15 in). The
tree flowers between the months of April and June with bi-
sexual inflorescences in multiflower (10-40 flowers) aux-
iliary panicles with white corollas. Fruit production begins
around the tree's fifth year of life and stabilizes between
65 and 80 years. Its production decreases from that age on,
although it may continue to bear fruit for hundreds of years
(Rapoport, 2008).
INTRODUCTION
Olive tree
The olive, Olea europaea L., is undoubtedly the most im-
portant and well known of the 35 members of the Olea
genus, in the plant family Oleaceae. The species are of hy-
brid origin, which may be the result of crossing the closely
related species Olea africana, native to Arabia and Egypt;
Olea ferruginea, native to Asia; and Olea laperrini, native
to southern Morocco. The olive tree's origins are lost in
time, coinciding and mingling with the expansion of the
civilizations that developed on the Mediterranean coasts.
During centuries these civilizations steered the course of
humanity and left their mark on Western culture. How-
ever it is clear that at some time during prehistory an olive
tree resulted from crosses between the species. Over time
this tree would acquire a sacred and mythological status
to become a symbol of peace and friendship, which is still
recognized to this day.
Recent paleobotanical analyses show that the wild olive
was found throughout the entire length and breadth of the
Mediterranean basin. Its origin goes back to the Pliocene
epoch, as shown by fossilized remains of wild olive leaves
found in Mongardino, Italy. In modern times, the olive tree
has continued its journey and is now grown in such faraway
places as southern Africa, China, Japan and Australia. It
may currently be grown anywhere with a suitable climate
(Civantos, 2008a).
The rustic nature of the Olea europaea species and its
easy cultivation permitted it to take root in poor soils. Its
habitat is mostly found between the latitudes of 30
Olive fruit
The olive fruit is a small, more or less oval-shaped edible
drupe. It normally measures between 1 and 4 cm (0.39 and
1.57 in) in length and between 0.6 and 2 cm (0.23 and 0.79
in) in diameter. Its weight ranges between 1.5 and 8.0 g
(0.053 and 0.28 oz), depending on both genetic character-
istics and environmental factors. This single-stone fruit is
made up of three main tissues: endocarp or stone, meso-
carp or pulp, and exocarp or outer skin. The set of these
tissues is called the pericarp and originates in the ovarian
wall. The tissues of the fruit develop in the ovary through
the processes of cell division, expansion, and differentiation
and
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