Olive Tree, Italy – CO2 650 Kg

Olive Tree

The Olive is a species of evergreen tree in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin.

Average life span: 430 years
CO2 offset: up to 650 kg
Height: 3-15 m

Olive trees show a marked preference for calcareous soils, flourishing best on limestone slopes and crags, and coastal climate conditions. They grow in any light soil, even on clay if well drained, but in rich soils, they are predisposed to disease and produce poorer oil than in poorer soil. Olives like hot weather and sunny positions without any shade, while temperatures below −10 °C (14 °F) may injure even a mature tree. They tolerate drought well, due to their sturdy and extensive root systems. Olive trees can live for several centuries and can remain productive for as long if they are pruned correctly and regularly.

In situations where extreme cold has damaged or killed the olive tree, the rootstock can survive and produce new shoots which in turn become new trees. In this way, olive trees can regenerate themselves. In Tuscany in 1985, a very severe frost destroyed many productive, and aged, olive trees and ruined many farmers’ livelihoods. However, new shoots appeared in the spring and, once the dead wood was removed, became the basis for new fruit-producing trees. In this way, an olive tree can live for centuries or even millennia.

Olive tree is very hardy: drought-, disease- and fire-resistant, it can live to a great age. Its root system is robust and capable of regenerating the tree even if the above-ground structure is destroyed. The older the olive tree, the broader and more gnarled the trunk becomes. Many olive trees in the groves around the Mediterranean are said to be hundreds of years old, while an age of 2,000 years is claimed for a number of individual trees.

Please note that average lifetime and KG of CO2 offset are conservative estimations made by Evertreen based on external consultants, papers, articles and comparable platforms.

These trees are planted in Italy in Lazio Region by Evertreen’s farmers.