Olea europaea (Olive Tree)

Common name: Olive Tree

Description: The Olive Tree is one of the most iconic and romantic of all garden plants, with its beautifully gnarled trunk, attractive silvery-grey evergreen foliage, and timeless Mediterranean character. In summer, small creamy-white flowers are produced, followed by green olives that ripen to black in a long hot season. Drought tolerant and long-lived — some olives live for thousands of years — it makes a magnificent container specimen or focal point in sheltered UK gardens. The combination of ornamental beauty and edible fruit make it uniquely valuable.

Other benefits: iconic, very long-lived, edible olives (in warm seasons), excellent in large containers

Wildlife attraction: bees visit the flowers; the tree provides shelter for insects and small birds

Height & spread (approx.) at 10 years: 3m x 2m (in a container)

Position: full sun; warm and sheltered; against a south-facing wall is ideal

Soil pH: neutral to slightly alkaline; free-draining essential

Moisture: well-drained; drought tolerant once established; avoid waterlogged conditions

Winter hardiness: cold hardy to -10°C; mulch roots and protect in hard winters