And Then...There Were Olives

Three years ago, one of the four Champanel grapevines in my backyard jardin died, from that year's tough winter. A cold February night in the low 20's did it in. In its place was planted an organic Arbequina Olive Tree. Arbequina is the major olive tree of the Catalonia Provence in Northeast Spain, origination of my paternal Grandmother's family.

"The production starts early and is high, with relatively low maintenance" read the research article on it. It went on to say "Arbequina is considered frost hardy and well adapted to different soil types. In Catalonia, trees regularly take 22f winter nights without any problems. The yield is high and it is considered an early bearer. The oil is of high quality with a fruity flavor."

I thought it would be cool to have one of these, in my garden. Well, I gotta tell you, the damn thing has not done anything in the way of production for three years....I actually gave up hope and quit "babying" it. It continued to look good and grow taller. Now, I have discovered that it was just teasing me and that it has begun to bear olives! The excitement ensued!

Random Thought: Who said olives will not grow in Texas?

Gardeners, I suppose, are a simple lot. We get excited over the smallest of events and happenings in our little sphere of influence...