オリーブ
orību
Olive tree
Olea europaea
An olive bonsai brings a Mediterranean feel into your home: silvery-green leaves, gnarled bark and a tree that forgives a lot. Good olive bonsai care in a central European climate comes down to two things: lots of sun in summer and a bright, cool spot in winter. Here is an honest look at what that means day to day.
Indoors or outdoors? The honest answer
Olives are often sold as indoor bonsai. In reality, the olive tree is not a true indoor tree. It comes from the sunny Mediterranean and needs a lot of light.
- Spring to autumn: outdoors. As soon as night frosts are over, put it in the sunniest spot you have. Full sun is right here, and it also keeps the leaves nice and small.
- Winter: bright and cool. Around 5 to 10 °C is ideal, for example a bright, unheated stairwell, a cool conservatory or a frost-free greenhouse.
- Warm living room in winter: possible as a last resort, but the worst option. It is too dark and the heating makes the air too dry. The tree then often drops leaves and becomes prone to pests such as scale insects.
If you are looking for a bonsai that can really live indoors all year, have a look at our guide to indoor bonsai.
Frost: where is the limit?
An olive tree planted in the ground and well established can handle light frost. A bonsai is different: in a shallow pot the roots are almost unprotected from frost. On top of that, olives cope badly with cold, wet weather.
Our advice: bring your olive bonsai inside before the nights turn frosty, rather a little early than too late. Keep an eye on the weather forecast in autumn. In spring it can go back out once no more night frosts are expected.
A cool winter has another benefit: the cold is what makes an olive tree set flowers the following year. The small white flowers then appear in early summer.
Watering and feeding
Olives are known for coping with drought. In a small bonsai pot, though, the water supply is tiny.
- Water thoroughly as soon as the top of the soil is dry, until water runs out of the bottom of the pot.
- Don't keep it constantly wet. Olives really dislike waterlogging, so a free-draining soil is important.
- In summer, in full sun, that can mean almost daily watering. In a cool winter spot you only need to water rarely, but never let the soil dry out completely.
Our guide to watering bonsai explains how to spot the right moment.
Feed during the growing season from spring into early autumn. Don't feed in winter.
Pruning and shaping
The olive is a grateful tree to prune: it sprouts vigorously, even from old wood.
- During the growing season: cut long new shoots back to one or two pairs of leaves. This makes the crown denser.
- Heavier cuts: best in late winter or early spring, just before strong growth starts again.
- Before winter, only cut what is damaged or far too long.
Wiring, which means bending branches into shape with wire, works well on young, flexible branches. Older branches become brittle and snap easily. For those, use guy wires that gently pull the branch down instead.
Repotting
Repot young olive trees about every two to three years, older ones less often. Spring is best, once it is warmer and the tree is growing again. Use a loose, very free-draining bonsai soil.
Common problems
- Leaves dropping in winter: usually too warm and too dark. A brighter, cooler spot helps.
- Yellow leaves: often too much water or too little light. More under yellow leaves.
- Scale insects: small brown bumps on branches and leaf undersides, typical in a warm winter spot. Remove them early and improve the location.
In Japan
In Japanese, the olive is simply called オリーブ (orību), written in katakana, the script used for words from other languages. That alone tells you the olive is a newcomer to Japan. Its centre is the island of 小豆島 (Shōdoshima) in the Seto Inland Sea. Cultivation began there in 1908, and it is said to have been the only one of several trial sites where it really worked. Today most of Japan's olives come from this island.
The olive is also the symbol tree and symbol flower of Kagawa prefecture, which Shōdoshima belongs to. An olive bonsai brings two worlds together: the Mediterranean and the Japanese art of growing trees.
Find out which tree suits you and your home best with our bonsai finder.
Frequently asked questions
Is an olive bonsai an indoor bonsai?
Not really. It needs a lot of sun and belongs outdoors from spring to autumn. In winter, a bright, cool room is better than a warm living room.
How much frost can an olive bonsai take?
In a shallow pot the roots are barely protected. So bring it inside before the nights turn frosty.
Why is my olive dropping leaves in winter?
Usually it is too warm and too dark, often with dry air from the heating. A bright spot at around 5 to 10 °C helps.
How often should I water my olive bonsai?
Whenever the top of the soil is dry, and then thoroughly. In summer that can be almost daily, in a cool winter spot only rarely.
Does an olive bonsai flower?
Yes, with small white flowers in early summer. For that it needs a cool winter first.