Olivery News

Here is a picture from today of Kalamata Olive tree 'H4' or 'Heddie' as Eddie its owner likes to call it.  We are pleased to report that this tree is flourishing.  You can see the new growth rising 600mm above the stump. Eddie has chosen well!  The next picture is of F8, our 'slow starter'.  Transplanted in October at the same time as the rest of the trees, this tree is the last to sprout.  You can just see on the right hand side of the tree a small shoot - approx 20mm long.  This is especially pleasing as it...

With Harvest fast approaching (May) we are starting to asses how the olives are doing.  Big change this year, I am measuring the olives and recording their size.  This is to give a benchmark for future years as to where the olives are at.  I hope to make better growing and harvest decisions as a result.  The ultimate objective is to grow larger olives by changing the variables on the grove. This picture show the Manzanillo tree at the Olivery.  At 19mm it is a big fruit for this time of year.  The average width is around 16mm. Good tree...

Eddie is our youngest olive tree adopter.  His recent visit (Oct 2013) was soon after our transplanting of the Kalamata Olives.  We tracked his tree from its old location to new.  It has a new number (H4) and Eddie has appropriately named it 'Heddie'. We gave Eddie the choice of new tree but he chose to stay with this one.  Well done Eddie we like your loyalty! We are pleased to report that 33 of the 34 transplanted trees are growing well with plenty of new growth.  One has not sprouted yet, but we are remaining positive!   'Heddie' at...

What's up on the grove?.   We've had one of the best springs for 25 years.  It has been warm, regular rain and gentle winds.  This has facilitated a fantastic fruit set on the trees.  (Fruit set is a terms used for the conversion of flowers to fruit.)  so things so far are looking good.  The last couple of weeks have had some severe Hail storms in the Hawke's Bay.  This has damaged some fruit crops.  We have been lucky in that they have missed our olive groves. The transplanted Kalamata Olives (right) are starting to grow with little shoots...