PROPHET Muhammad, Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) is reported to have said, “Drink olive oil and anoint yourselves with it, for it comes from a blessed tree.” (Narrated by Abu Usayd Al-Ansari, Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 4221) Anas Ibn Malik narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) came to visit Sa'd Ibn Ubadah, and he brought bread and olive oil, and he ate (them). Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “May the fasting (men) break their fast with you, and the pious partake of your food, and the angels pray for blessing on you.” (Sunan Abu Dawood, Hadith 3845) The olive tree has been cultivated for its edible fruit, since before the dawn of civilization. The Sumerians in South Iraq are said to have known about the olive some 5,500 years ago (3,500 B.C.). The common olive in Arabic, Persian, Turkish and Urdu languages is known as Zaitoon. Its botanical name is Olea Europaea and belongs to family oleaceae. Botanical description It is an evergreen tree which grows up to 15m with broad crown and a thin trunk. Its trunk becomes gnarled as it ages. Its bark is grey in color, while its leaves are simple, leathery, oblong, lanceolate and tapering at ends. They are dark greyish green. Flowers are numerous, small, whitish or yellowish white in color. Most of the flowers are imperfect, and fruit cannot grow from them. Generally a mature tree produce as many as 500,000 flowers. Fruit drupes are ellipsoid to sub-globose, smooth, glabrous, green when ripe, on maturity blackish-purple, brownish-green or rarely ivory-white. Origin and growth Its origin is in Mediterranean region. It is distributed and cultivated in Mediterranean Europe i.e. from Portugal and Spain to Italy and Greece. It is cultivated in other countries like Crimea, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt, Turkey, Caucasus, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Morocco, Canary Islands and India (north west). According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) more than 800 million olive trees are grown in the world covering an area about 10 million hectares. In Argentina nearly seven million olive tress are grown on an area of 70,000 hectares. Spain and Italy the two Mediterranean countries, account for some 385 million trees distributed over 4.5 million hectares. Olive trees grown in other Mediterranean countries are Cyprus, France, Israel, Lebanon, Libya and Yugoslavia. Major producing countries are Algeria, Greece, Jordan, Morocco, Portugal, Syria, Tunisia and Turkey. In Palestine 100,000 families in the West Bank alone rely on olive sales to support their dependents. Last but not the least, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, South Africa, Australia and United States (mainly California) and even Japan also have olive tree plantations. History and some interesting facts The olive tree is characterized by its longevity. It usually lives for 200-300 years. It has occasionally attained the age of 2000 years. A wreath made of the branches of the wild olive tree was the price for the victors in the Olympic games of antiquity in Greece. An olive branch is a proverbial symbol of peace. The olive trees are generally raised from the stem cuttings for good yield. Grafted plants are also considered for planting. The trees grow in many types of soil but need good drainage. Fertilizers that add nitrogen to the soil can increase yields. It needs hot and dry climate for a good quality of fruits. The density of planting varies depending on the country and region's climate and soil conditions. Cultivators may plant 100 to 300 per hectare but in some places 400 trees were also planted. In traditional olive groves, the full production of crop is obtained only after the seventh or eight year of the plants. But it is more important nowadays to reduce the initial non-productive period of new plantations than to achieve long-living trees. Many groves are planted with distance between trees of 10m or more, or a density of 100 trees or less per hectare. If each tree produces 1 kg of olives per tree, for 100 trees the yield of only one quintal of olives per hectare can be obtained. The role of olives It plays an important role in the economy of the countries where it grows as a vital crop. Moreover it increases the land value where the soil is not suitable for other crops. It also contributes to soil conservation. Many families are depending on the olive-crop for their good income. It provides seasonal employment for many farm workers. The olive products provide the nutritional needs to the people by their peculiar nature, properties and with high biological values. It provides a valuable source of export income, which contributes to an economic growth. __
