Olive

[Ako]

Hi all I live in Adelaide south Australia can I still collect and flat cut olives or am I too late??

[nozila]

Hi,
Adelaide enthusiast here as well. I collect all year round, whenever the opportunity arises. Hope that helps.


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[Ako]

Do you still flat cut all year round?

[nozila]

It’s been proven that flat cut works - not sure about all year round. Perhaps someone else can chime in. Personally, I just dig it out and remove as much of the base as I can once I get it home. None of my trees are flat cut, I might regret that when it eventually goes into a bonsai pot but that’s a result of my poor tools to do the initial job.


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[Matt S]

Flat cuts are fine all year round. Digging is harder when the ground is dry but with the recent rains now should be a good time.

[juan73870]

I can vouch for Matts post - flat cut can be done successfully all year round here in Adelaide. Go your hardest!

[greg27]

Yes another +1 for Matt's post; I've dug and flat-cut olives in all seasons and haven't noticed much difference to survival rates or time taken to get new growth. Just be aware that traipsing around the bush in warmer weather = a bigger risk of snakes!

[SuperBonSaiyan]

Flat cuts are fine all year round. Digging is harder when the ground is dry but with the recent rains now should be a good time.

Just to make sure I'm understanding correctly - is a flat cut basically cutting the whole olive trunk and leaving the roots in the ground?

What do you do to make the flat cut survive? Any rooting hormone, potting mix, conditions (greenhouse / plastic cover / etc.)?

I never knew it was possible to keep olives alive that way - I might start asking some local places if they're wanting to get rid of some random olives around their land.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[terryb]

Just to make sure I'm understanding correctly - is a flat cut basically cutting the whole olive trunk and leaving the roots in the ground?

What do you do to make the flat cut survive? Any rooting hormone, potting mix, conditions (greenhouse / plastic cover / etc.)?

Not quite. The cut is generally made through the thickest part of the lignotuber (the bulbous bit under the trunk that the roots come from). The process is to dig the lignotuber and trunk together, cutting the major roots as you go. Take that home and then cut through the lignotuber with a saw, chainsaw, axe or whatever you have.

You then treat the trunk as if it is a cutting. Roots will grow from the edges of the cut surface, not underneath. What care is required will depend on where you live and who you listen to. You will get many different responses to these questions. I use rotting hormone, a mixture of potting mix and some inorganics for drainage and just leave it outside if dug in winter or early spring.

[SuperBonSaiyan]

Not quite. The cut is generally made through the thickest part of the lignotuber (the bulbous bit under the trunk that the roots come from). The process is to dig the lignotuber and trunk together, cutting the major roots as you go. Take that home and then cut through the lignotuber with a saw, chainsaw, axe or whatever you have.

You then treat the trunk as if it is a cutting. Roots will grow from the edges of the cut surface, not underneath. What care is required will depend on where you live and who you listen to. You will get many different responses to these questions. I use rotting hormone, a mixture of potting mix and some inorganics for drainage and just leave it outside if dug in winter or early spring.

So I'd need to dig a little bit to reveal the lignotuber (not as much as digging the whole root ball + taproot). Then flat cut (as much as possible) the lignotuber and carry that home with the trunk.

You mention "take that home and then cut through the lignotuber with a saw, chainsaw, axe or whatever you have."

Why do you cut through the lignotuber at home (and not in the field)?

[KIRKY]

If you look up olive yamadori in the search above right hand corner, you will find lots of posts including pictures of what others have collected and trees have been treated on site and at home.
Cheers
Kirky

[SuperBonSaiyan]

If you look up olive yamadori in the search above right hand corner, you will find lots of posts including pictures of what others have collected and trees have been treated on site and at home.
Cheers
Kirky

I was searching Olive digging... yamadori makes much more sense on a bonsai forum, thanks!

[shibui]

Why do you cut through the lignotuber at home (and not in the field)?

Olives are generally not real hard to dig. They have relatively few roots and those are brittle so dig down around the lignotuber, cut any lateral roots then give the trunk a good heave sideways and the remaining down roots usually snap off and you can lift the tree out of the hole.

If you've ever tried using a chainsaw sideways in a hole you'll appreciate that it is far easier and safer to get the tree out, lay it on the side and gut downward. Used properly chainsaw is a great tool but used wrong and they are lethal.
The merest touch of the chain on soil or grit will ruin all the teeth on a chain. Much better to get it out and wash off as much soil as possible before attacking.

[SuperBonSaiyan]

What would you recommend for aftercare?

I have the opportunity to dig up a Kalamata olive tree that's quite old. The base is around 60-80cm in diameter.

Once I get it out of the ground my plan was to put it into a large plant bag, fill with some cheap dirt and hope it makes it. Once it starts sprouting growth again I'll work on cutting the root down further.

Any advice on keeping it alive would be appreciated. Whether that means shading it through the summer, using something other than dirt, cutting the root ball down right away, or whatever.

It's been alive for a long time, so I'd like to keep it alive as best I'm able to.

[terryb]

Why do you cut through the lignotuber at home (and not in the field)?

What Shibui said. It also saves damaging the area around the cut where you want the roots to grow while you wrestle the stump into the car, ute or whatever to get it home. If you go to the effort of digging it, why not give it the best chance to survive.