My son purchased an old piece of property here in Lockeford, CA that had a very old Olive Tree on it about 90 to 100 years old and approx. 50 foot tall. He had it pruned and I got some nice pieces. Now our neighbor Lodi, CA, is beginning to produce, and press Olive oil.
Four facts about Olives you may not know.
l. Olive trees may live to be 1,500 years old; the average live span is about 500 years.
2. California is the only state where olives are grown commercially.
3. There are 500 million olive trees in Europe, and 50 million in California.
California produces less than 5 percent of the world crop, but it produces more that 70 percent of ripe olives consumed in the U.S.
4. Olives are not edible raw, and must be treated with lye and/or cured in brine or dry salt before being edible. They contain bout 20 percent oil.
I have found that young trees (under five years) are not spalted or have good fingering. Older trees produce a better fingering or spalted for really nice pen blanks. This is my opinion of course.
Four facts about Olives you may not know.
l. Olive trees may live to be 1,500 years old; the average live span is about 500 years.
2. California is the only state where olives are grown commercially.
3. There are 500 million olive trees in Europe, and 50 million in California.
California produces less than 5 percent of the world crop, but it produces more that 70 percent of ripe olives consumed in the U.S.
4. Olives are not edible raw, and must be treated with lye and/or cured in brine or dry salt before being edible. They contain bout 20 percent oil.
I have found that young trees (under five years) are not spalted or have good fingering. Older trees produce a better fingering or spalted for really nice pen blanks. This is my opinion of course.
