The Germination Period of Olives

Germination Time

• Olives contain a hard pit in the fruit center. The real seed is contained inside the stony outer covering called the endocarp. The endocarp is not part of the actual seed or plant embryo. This hard covering leads to slow germination that takes anywhere from a month to six months or even longer, according to G. Steven Sibbett and Louise Ferguson in "Olive Production Manual."

Slow Germination Causes

• The germination time of the olive seeds primarily varies by the cultivar as does the success rate of the germination, ranging anywhere between 5 and 90 percent. Another main reason for unreliable germination is the inability of the actual embryo within the hard endocarp to grow through this layer. An incomplete internal dormancy of the real seed or defects in the plant embryo also lead to slow or failed germination.

Collecting Seed

• To collect seed for propagation, harvest the fruit when it is ripe but before it has turned black. This is anywhere from late September to the middle of November. The harvest time for olives varies between cultivars. The cultivated olive varieties will not produce the same fruit when their seeds are used for propagation. These new seedlings will be similar to the original, wild olive variety with small fruit. The seedlings are grafted or chip-budded with the required cultivar to obtain the desired variety.

Pre-Planting Treatment

• Various pre-planting treatments of seed are used to aid germination. These mechanical and chemical treatments help with breaking the seed dormancy. The seed are scarified by cracking the endocarp carefully without damaging the seed within. Chemical treatment consists of soaking the seeds in concentrated sulfuric acid that softens the endocarp. The soaking time varies by cultivars, ranging anywhere between 24 and 30 hours. The seeds then need to be rinsed for one to two hours to remove all traces of the acid. Plant the seeds following treatment. Plant during spring and maintain temperatures of 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit.