AusBonsai

Hi guys,

I'm off for an Olive dig in a couple of weeks with my local club, and I'm hoping to get a bit of advice as to what type of soil / whatever / mixture i should be putting the tree in to get the best results. A couple of my local club members suggested just regular premium potting mix with watered in Seasol, but I've seen people on here mention Seasol baths / Sphagnum moss / Diatomite / Sharp sand etc etc for various trees they've dug up.

I've recently bought a few ingredients to make my own soil - diatomite, zeolite, pumice, 2-3mm sand, Coco peat, mini orchid bark nuggets, sphagnum moss, Seasol, Superthrive etc, so I've got quite a few things at my disposal.

What have people had the most success with? I don't expect I'll be digging up anything TOO huge, as my weakling arms prevent it

I'm in Adelaide, if that makes any difference.

Bek

Hi Bek , I plant them out in course river sand or scoria for the first 12 months , then into a well draining bonsai mix .

Cheers Alpineart

alpineart wrote:Hi Bek , I plant them out in course river sand or scoria for the first 12 months , then into a well draining bonsai mix .

Cheers Alpineart

Bek, just do what Alpine says. Judging by the photos he posts, he know what he's talking about

I have had the most success with a mixture of diatomite, cacti/succulent mix and a handful of zeolite.

But cacti/succulent mix on its own works just as well.

alpineart wrote:Hi Bek , I plant them out in course river sand or scoria for the first 12 months , then into a well draining bonsai mix .

Cheers Alpineart

Awesome thanks! What about seasol or anything like that?:)

When ever I've dug olives, after cutting the bases flat, I soaked them in a tub containing a Seasol solution for a day or so before potting into an open type mix of 75% sharp sand 25% potting mix. Think I have only lost one of the many I've dug - and that's even after an aeroplane ride from Adel's to Darwin.

Graeme wrote:When ever I've dug olives, after cutting the bases flat, I soaked them in a tub containing a Seasol solution for a day or so before potting into an open type mix of 75% sharp sand 25% potting mix. Think I have only lost one of the many I've dug - and that's even after an aeroplane ride from Adel's to Darwin.

Sorry for tedious questions, but what sort of strength seasol solution is best?

Thanks so much for taking time to answer:D

Andrew F wrote:I have had the most success with a mixture of diatomite, cacti/succulent mix and a handful of zeolite.

But cacti/succulent mix on its own works just as well.

Thanks Andrew! It's still so odd fir me getting used to using 'soils' which don't actually contain much, or any, soil at all. I'm learning so much reading through these forums and speaking to more experienced people at my local clubs. It's awesome! [SMILING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]

I just pot olives into my standard potting mix straight after collecting. No seasol, no soaking, just prune the roots back, flat bottom if necessary then pot up as normal. 100% success so far in my climate. As far as I can see they will survive almost anything you want to do so make it complicated if you want or just do it the easy way.

Well it's good news that they seem hard to kill! Are desert ash the same? We've got plenty of those here too.

Bek wrote:

Andrew F wrote:I have had the most success with a mixture of diatomite, cacti/succulent mix and a handful of zeolite.

But cacti/succulent mix on its own works just as well.

Thanks Andrew! It's still so odd fir me getting used to using 'soils' which don't actually contain much, or any, soil at all. I'm learning so much reading through these forums and speaking to more experienced people at my local clubs. It's awesome! [SMILING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]

You're welcome, for now if you have a 'big green shed that stocks stuff pertaining to gardening/diy, where lowest prices are just the beginning' just grab a bag of this:



This is the easiest, cheapest solution until you get a grasp of inorganic substrates and the complexities that surround them.

Olives are great, 99% bullet proof.

I'm surprised nobody from South Africa has made any suggestions on this topic. I believe every club member in South Africa go on a Wild Olive dig every year. What I suspect will be different is the age of the trees dug. Although young trees are dug, most trees are 50 to 150 years old when dug. When digging a young tree you are likely to get some roots with finer roots also present. When digging a very old tree, you are very unlikely to get any roots. In which case, the stubs are removed and often the tree, which may originally have been 3 meters tall, is treated as a cutting. Many techniques work for different growers in different geographies. However, a technique which works well, is a dig in July or early August. The tree is left in a water with Superthrive for 24 to 48 hours after collecting. Fertilizer, such a Seasol I have not seen used often. The Superthrive is used instead. The stub is them plated in a VERY well draining oversized plastic container. Not too large, but enough room. The medium, although some minor nuances do occur is generally rough river sand. I.e. Small agate, 1-3mm. This is great for root development. Some growers do add some rooting paste/gel around the base to stimulate the root development. The tree is kept in semi shade until new growth appears and then moved systematically into a sunnier position. We do however get winter rain, so the environment is moist until at least end of September. With a moderate spring. The collection of trees in summer rainfall areas are similar, but the collection is a bit later, August. With protection from frost.

Attached a reasonably young collected olive by Rudi Adams (Olive Master).

Some inspiration. This tree was collected by Rudi Adams and is one of, if not the most famous collected olives in South Africa. Mainly because of the development and story behind it, but it is a tremendous tree.

Another view of the same tree.

Regular soil: I have found that what works for me is an equal amount of pine bark (about 1/4"), sifted turface (use a window screen), and small stone the size of gravel.
Fast Draining: For a fast draining soil cut the amount of bark by 1/2.Keep the rest of the ingredients the same amount that would be used for a regular soil. This works for junipers, bouganville,or any other trees that, from your research, require a fast draining soil.