old olive progression.

[Sammy D]

Got this old girl about four years ago. One of my first purchases of a stick in a pot. When I got it it was in poor health and I suspect the guy who sold it to me seen me coming. Payed 40 bucks for it and it almost died. Spent the first two years trying to grow after dying back in the first couple months I owned it. It was very loose in the pot and also had scale. Suspect it was dug just before it was sold to me ? Anyway here is the first four years with me. Hopefully will progress faster now as health seems to be improving

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now my first ever atempt at some serious carving. Used Combination of chain saw and dremel

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now the final picture. Although I have cut the top 20cm off the top of the olive. Will leave it probably for the whole growing season to grow and get strong. It is now quite sturdy in the pot although I suspect roots are only on one side of the tree. Judging by the limited live veins on the trunk

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[Mount Nasura]

Glad it pulled through!

[Pup]

Reduce the height and make it more compact. Just my

Cheers Pup

[Watto]

I agree with Pup. The drama of the trunk carve is lost on all the growth a long way form the trunk. Compact & drama go together.

[Sammy D]

Will do guys. How much do you have in mind.little reduction.

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more reduction

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and a full hack

[kcpoole]

For me a chop at the apex of vert 2 and a new leader from there
nice carvi9ng

Ken

[Guy]

good save------try not to do the pine look

[Andrew Legg]

Personally, I'd do absolutely nothing to this tree for about 3 years other than feeding it strongly and letting it thicken. In tree years time you'll have thickened the branches to a point where they look in proportion to that trunk. Then, come back here and ask for ideas. Everything there needs to thicken up, and that's not going to happen if you chop chop chop the whole time.

[Sammy D]

Ok I have given it a big chop. Will obviously allow the bottom branches to lengthen but with better ramification than was before. Also aĺlow the top to ramifi and there will be no obvious leader at the top. The top 10 percent will be lots of branches making a rounded top. A bit more like a deciduous tree. will hopefully help to make it not like a pine. Also going to leave one main shoot to grow on each major branch up to two metres extension to allow the base of each major branch to fatten. ( maybe a comprimise between cutting and andrews advice )

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this is it after chop.

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this is what I will allow to grow unhinderered while still ramifying the branch. I hope this way when the time is right and I cut the sacrifice branch off I will have a ramified branch with no more to do.

[Sammy D]

Will also allow main branches to cross the trunk in future

[GavinG]

I think what you've done is a big improvement - you've focussed attention on the trunk where it is best. Would you consider some sharpish bends in the branches at some stage? The trunk shows a hard life, so the branches might reflect that as well if they get bashed about a bit. Just my 2c. Straight-forward simple branches might not say what you want, in the end.

Gavin

[Watto]

Well done Sammy. The tree has had a reasonable amount of attention recently and now is the time to let it rest for 12 months or so. Work, then recovery time is a recipe for success.

[Sammy D]

Gavin I think I know what you mean. Maybe put in a link for reference. Would love to put more in the branches but to be honest I have cracked and glued with wood glue almost every major branch (after fracturing them slightly) trying to change the shape surprising how a bit of glue keeps the boken branch alive. advice maybe through cut and grow. Unless raffier? Dont have any and never used it. ? How to put more drama in branch

[Mount Nasura]

Let em grow out to about 3 or 4 feet, and then cut back hard to first internode. Then same again for one of the two new branches. Keep the other one shorter. If you repeat this three or four times, you'll get some nice thick primary branches to match up to that trunk. If you keep cutting then back too much, you'll end up wit fine think branched pads sitting on a heavy trunk. Unless that's what you want, it is probably going to be considered then lesser of the two processes. Once you have grown out and cut back a few times you'll have good thick primary branching and secondary branching with movement. You can develop the fine structure on top of those. Make sense?

from Andrew Legg on my post first olive and progression 2012. I'm currently growing them out. Will post a update soon.

[Sammy D]

Look forward to the update