The olive tree

By students from

1st EPAL Ierapetra’s

Introduction Olive trees can live for

hundreds of years. This is the oldest tree in the area. The maximum diameter of the trunk is 4,9 m and the circumference is 14,20 m. Based on the method of annual rings, it is estimated that the tree was planted in the period 1350-1100BC!

Planting They must be planted in

warm places that don’t have much humidity.

Pruning They must be pruned

every year.

Watering Olive trees need

watering from May to November.( Those months it doesn’t rain on Crete.)

Fertilizing You can fertilize the olive

trees in February or March after picking the olives with nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. These fertilizers don’t leave traces in the olive oil.

Enemies The main enemy of the

olive tree is the fruit fly. It is a fly that makes a hole in the olive and lays its eggs. When the eggs hatch the worms eat the olive. This affects the quality of the olive oil.

Fruit fly

Trap

Diseases The main disease that

the olive tree can be affected by is a kind of carcinoma. Lumps are formed on the branches.

Picking the olives The olives are ripe to be

picked from December to March. You use tools like rods, nets and generators.

Conclusion Like all living organisms,

olive trees need care so that they can give us their fruit and fresh olive “juice”- olive oil.

eTwinning project

“On a tasty European Trail”by

1st EPAL Ierapetra’sTeam Revolt

Sources:

http://www.cretanbeaches.com/Flora/The-mythical-trees-of-Crete/the-olive-tree-of-azorias/#ixzz3UAFxbS00

http://basilakakis.gr/2012/04/23/%CE%B7-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%B9%CE%AD%CF%81%CE%B3%CE%B5%CE%B9%CE%B1-%CF%84%CE%B7%CF%82-%CE%B5%CE%BB%CE%B9%CE%AC%CF%82/

Olive

Drawings byTasos, Esmeralda, Soula and Zeta.