Manzanillo Olive Tree

Manzanillo is the olive to plant when you actually want olives to eat. It is the classic Spanish table variety, heavy cropping, with large plump fruit that cures well green or black. In a home garden expect a broad spreading tree around 5m tall and 4m wide, with silver grey evergreen foliage and cream flowers in spring. It is frost hardy, drought tolerant and at home in poor soil and salt wind.

Why you'll love it

• A genuine table olive. Large fleshy fruit with a small stone, bred for curing rather than for looks.
• Reliable cropping. One of the more dependable croppers in Australian conditions.
• Grows where little else will. Drought, heat, frost, salt spray and poor stony ground are all within its range.
• Naturally low and spreading. The wide open habit makes picking easy from the ground.
• Safe around pets. Not toxic to cats or dogs.

Where it works best

Home groves. Plant 3m apart for an informal grove. Each tree fills out without shading its neighbour, and the rows stay walkable for netting and harvest.

Windbreaks and coastal gardens. Olives are among the best salt tolerant trees available, and a staggered row along an exposed boundary filters wind where a softer tree would burn.

Screening and feature planting. The same 3m spacing gives an informal evergreen screen, and a single mature specimen with a gnarled trunk carries a courtyard on its own.

Growing Manzanillo olive in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, with no compromise. It suits warm temperate, cool temperate, Mediterranean and dry inland gardens, and is frost hardy once established. In humid tropical and subtropical gardens fruit set and quality both suffer, so treat this as a dry climate tree.

Soil. Free draining is the requirement. Sandy, rocky, alkaline and shallow soils are all fine. On heavy clay, plant on a mound 300mm high, because wet feet in winter will kill it faster than any drought.

Water and feed. Deep water weekly through the first two summers. After that it survives on rainfall, but for a crop rather than just a tree, keep the water up through spring flowering and early fruit fill. Feed in late winter and early summer.

Pruning and cropping. Prune in late winter to an open vase shape so light reaches the fruiting wood. Fruit forms on last season's growth, so shortening every branch every year removes the crop. Expect a worthwhile harvest from year five.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown from tube stock and 200mm and 250mm multipacks through 300mm, 400mm and 500mm pots, and up to 45L, 100L and 500L advanced trees. Smaller sizes are the economical way to plant a grove. The 45L and larger trees give you trunk and structure on day one.

Trees are packed to travel upright and delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost. Expect little visible growth for six weeks while roots establish, then steady extension through the warm months. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Compare every olive variety we grow
• Browse trees for Australian gardens
• How to prepare a garden bed
• See screening and windbreak options

Common questions

Do I need a second tree for pollination?

Manzanillo sets some fruit on its own, but crops are noticeably heavier with another variety flowering nearby. If you have room for two trees, plant a different cultivar within about 30m.

How big will it really get in a garden?

Around 5m tall and 4m wide. It is naturally a spreading tree rather than a tall one, so plan for width more than height.

When do I pick, and can I eat them off the tree?

Pick green from March to April, or wait until black in May and June for a milder result. Raw olives are intensely bitter and must be cured in brine or water for several weeks first.