The history of Olive Tree
- The origins of the cultivation of olives were found in the Middle East, and then it developed throughout the Mediterranean basin.
In Syria and Palestine, mills have been found dating back to 5000 BC.
In Italy, more precisely in areas around Torre a Mare (Bari) and Fasano (Brindisi) geologists found artefacts dated back to the same period confirming as in that period olives were part of the local gastronomy.
The cultivation of olives and the production of olive oil were generating social well-being both economically and politically.
The population of the Philistines has left important remains related to the process by which they reduced the olive in paste using mortars made of stone and circular filters made with olive tree branches intertwined, used to extract and sift the oil from the paste, similar to today's “fiscoli”.
In the religious cultures and the Jewish people particularly, used the olive tree branches and the oil as symbol of peace. For example, the dove that brought the twig of olive tree to Noè, it is still today a representative of religious tradition or it was used for sanctifying and consecrating the priests and the ceremonies.
Thanks to Phoenician people, the olive tree arrived to many countries facing the Mediterranean. All those coastal areas of the Mediterranean basin experienced a major economic and trade development, particularly encouraged by the possibility to cultivate olive trees and vines, which were largely requested by populations in Mesopotamia and Egypt.
During the period of the Roman Empire, the cultivation of olive trees and the production of olive oil had a great development, having major improvements in cultivation practices, and the exchange and sale of olive oil was in a kind of stock exchange called "ark oil." This suggests that the olive oil was considered "green gold".
The olive oil was transported in goat-skins or terracotta amphorae, by sea or land as documenting findings made throughout the Mediterranean.
With the fall of Roman Empire and the arrival of barbaric populations, the Mediterranean agriculture and olive trees in particular suffered severe damage and nearly disappeared, giving place to forests and uncultivated lands.
In the Middle Ages olive oil became rare and precious, however, thanks to the monasteries and convents, the olive trees where once again reintroduced and grown in large extensions.
At the end of “Medieval”, Olive oil reached again the high levels of production. Ships laden with oil departed from growing areas, (centre-south) of Italy and the Mediterranean countries, and delivered to the North of Europe.
Between the 1600s and 1700s, during the Spanish domination, a deputy in Southern Span ordered to enlarge the roads that connect Naples, Puglia and Calabria to facilitate the transportation of olive oil.
Until the late 17th century by many areas of Puglia started striking oil cargoes for soap manufactures. Anything demonstrating that the Puglia was and is a major producer of olive oil.
Nowadays, the Italian Olive has undergone major developments both qualitatively and quantitatively.
They changed systems and forms of plant cultivation.
They were replaced with plants productive varieties little more successful, with graft techniques and the integration of plants most suitable to market requirements.
The collection of olives and the extraction of olive oil suffered mechanical innovation. The time of collection begins in early November and lasts until the end of January, beginning of February.
Today, the olive tree has spread throughout the Mediterranean basin and in most regions of Italy.
In the world, there are about 800 millions of olives trees of which 90% are being cultivated in the Mediterranean basin, Italy and Puglia in particular, protagonist with its unconditional 60% of the area cultivated in Italy.
The Italian olive oil has been protagonist of a qualitative growth which was not indifferent to the requests and needs of the consumers. In fact, olive oil is the main ingredient to well know and recommended Mediterranean diet.
Outline botanists
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The Olive Tree
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Family: Oleaceae
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Genus: Olea
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Species: Olea Europaea
The Olive Tree is an evergreen tree or shrub, long and secular living plant with a typical contorted and knotty trunk from the stump and rarely exceeds 8 – 15 metres. Its characteristic base is enlarged called “Ceppaia”, with several spherical swelling where every year emits new shoots called “Polloni”.
The roots are long and superficial.
The leaves are oblong in shape, of a silvery green colour, with a size ranging between 4 and 10 cm long and 1-3 wide.
The flowers are small of white – yellowish colour, which are borne generally on the last year’s branches. They are grouped in inflorescences of flowers; each flower has both reproductive organs, male and female.
The flowering season occurs between April and June.
The transformation of the fertilized flowers in to fruits does not exceed 10% of all flowers. The fruits are small 1-3 cm long and have different coloration which goes from green to purplish black.
Olives are harvest at the end of October and lasts until the beginning of February. In the past the olive were harvested by hand. Initially, there were handpicked. Subsequently, small hand operated rakes were used to run through the branches and pulling all olives down on huge cloths or nettings laid on the ground. This practice is no longer carried out because of high cost of labour, or is done only by small producers of oil intended for family consumption. Today, due to the luck of work force and the cost involved in harvesting the olives manually, most farmers started to adopt machines that shake the branches of the olive trees and letting the olive drop on the nets. For large extensions are used hydraulic grabber operated by tractors, equipped with a large towel which opens as an upside down umbrella, which the olives falling on to from the tree.
Another harvesting technique is by letting the olives spontaneously drop on the grown and collected using brooms or hovers. Alternatively, huge mesh nets are placed under the trees for months.
Once the olives are being harvested, they are conferred to the mills where they are mashed as soon as possible, usually within 2 days.
There are hundreds of cultivars of olives. In Italy alone, more than three hundreds cultivars have been counted but only few are grown in large extension.
In Rome and particularly Bari, the most common varieties are “ogliarola” and “coratina”.
During the year, several cultivation practices are carried out to help the olive trees for the next production, such as, harvesting, pruning, fertilization.
Temperate zones area of growth of olive trees is the whole of the Mediterranean basin, particularly in many region of south Italy with the most important ones are Puglia, Calabria, Sicily, respectively, which account for 90% of national production.
Production of a tree: It varies a lot from age and bearing, however on average, 15 to 40 kg. of olives from a mature tree – (Approximately from 3 to 8 kg. Of Olive Oil (20% yield).
Olivi in the Mediterranean: 700 million trees on 9,000,000 hectares.
Production world Olive: 7,900,000 tons. (7,200,000 olive oil - from 700,000 eating olives).
Italian Oil Production: 700,000 tons. Equal to 30% of the European production. |
