How to Wrap an Olive Tree For Winter

Olive trees truly are miracles of nature. Immensely tough and resilient, they’ve been known to survive and recover from severe drought and even fire. Some ancient olive trees are thousands of years old, a testament to the species’ hardiness.

But if there’s one thing that olive trees don’t like (aside from too much water), it’s the extreme cold.

What can olive trees tolerate?

Once temperatures drop below -10°C, olive trees will struggle – particularly if the wind picks up too. Prolonged periods of -15°C will certainly be dangerous to any olive tree, so if you regularly experience these temperatures over winter, you’ll need to take precautions.

How to keep your tree warm

The best way of protecting your olive tree over winter is to wrap it in a horticultural fleece jacket. To shield your tree against frost, drape the jacket over the top of your tree – and if temperatures are set to plummet well below zero, wrap the fleece around the trunk too.

Make sure you tie the fleece to the trunk securely – if it slips off while you’re away from home and the wind picks up, you could return to find your olive tree in a bad way. Most people use twine to keep the fleece securely attached to the trunk, but you can also buy zip-up fleeces to make life a little easier.

If the weather gets really harsh and you’re worried about your tree, you can place a layer of straw in between the fleece and trunk for added protection.

Olive trees for sale online

Looking to buy an olive tree of your own? We have the UK’s largest selection in stock at Olive Grove Oundle. From small olive trees in pots to beautiful ancient olive trees, we have it all. Browse our range online and order your tree today.