Common name: Black Olive

Black Olive is a salt-tolerant timber and landscape tree originating from Central America, the Caribbean and northern parts of South America.

It may reach 25 m (80 ft) or more in its native habitat. However, it typically reaches 10 to 15 m (30 to 50 ft) in cultivation, with a straight trunk supporting, in young trees, a pyramidal, pagoda-shaped crown formed by equidistant horizontal branches. As the tree ages, the branches droop, and the crown becomes rounded.

Some varieties have sharp spines that arm the branches, while others have none. The bark is light grey and smooth on young trees; on older trees, it becomes cracked and flaky.

Leaves are small, oval, dark green and densely arranged, casting a deep shade. Although evergreen, it sheds leaves steadily throughout the year.

The flowers are small and creamy-white but showy when abundant. They bloom fully in the middle of the dry season, with light blooms on and off over the rest of the year, followed by small, five-angled black fruit containing a single seed.

Cayman Islands

Environmental uses

Home garden tree - Black Olive is commonly cultivated in gardens, landscapes...

Street tree - ...and streetscapes, especially in coastal areas of its native region, for its attractive form...

Shade tree - ...shade...

Seaside garden plant - ...and tolerance to challenging growing conditions, including salt-laden winds, alkaline soils, drought, and seasonal flooding.

Bee forage - The flowers produce abundant nectar and are a major source for honeybees in Belize and a moderate-to-minor source in the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Honduras, and Mexico. However, reliable information on the honey itself, its colour, taste, density, or crystallisation properties, is limited.

Material uses

Hardwood - The wood is heavy, averaging around 930 kilograms per cubic meter (58 lbs per cubic ft), and has yellowish-to-greenish-brown heartwood with an olive hue.

Decay- and rot-resistant wood - It has good natural resistance to decay...

Termite-resistant wood - ...and termites, which makes it a durable hardwood suitable for indoor and outdoor construction.

Timber and lumber - Large, well-formed logs are sawn into planks...

Furniture and cabinets - ...for furniture and cabinets...

Flooring and decking - ...flooring and decking...

Joinery and millwork - ...and doors...

Crossties or sleepers - ...or into beams for railway sleepers...

Heavy construction - ...and heavy construction.

Poles and posts - Small-diameter logs are cut for posts, poles, and fencing...

Charcoal - ...and are also used to make charcoal.

Climate

Grows naturally in sub-humid to moderately humid tropical coastal climates, generally areas with annual lows of 19 to 25°C, annual highs of 28 to 35°C, annual rainfall of 800 to 4200 mm and a dry season of 6 months or less.

Growing

Black Olive is usually grown from vegetative parts because seed-grown trees do not always inherit the parent's characteristics.

It performs best in free-draining clay, loam, and sand soils that are slightly acidic to alkaline (generally pH 6.5 to 8.5) and in sites with full to partial sun.

It tolerates limestone soils, flooding, drought, and salt spray, making it ideal for coastal or seaside planting. Although widely cultivated as a landscape tree, it requires regular pruning to maintain an attractive shape.

Problem features

The seed floats, so moving water can easily disperse it, but no records show it escaping cultivation and naturalising anywhere. The Hawaii Pacific Weed Risk Assessment (HPWRA) project assesses it as a low weed-risk species for Hawaii. 

Although evergreen, there is a steady fall of leaves all year round, and the fruit exudes a sticky substance that can stain sidewalks, cars and other objects. It is also prone to suckering at the base of the trunk, and some varieties have branches armed with sharp spines that can cause injury.

Books

• Adams, C. D. 1972, Flowering plants of Jamaica, University of the West Indies, Mona, Greater Kingston

• Barwick, M., et al. 2004, Tropical & subtropical trees : a worldwide encyclopaedic guide, Thames and Hudson, London

• Bradbear, N. 2009, Bees and their role in forest livelihoods : a guide to the services provided by bees and the sustainable harvesting, processing and marketing of their products, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Rome

• Chudnoff, M. 1984, Tropical timbers of the world, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington, D.C.

• Crane, E., Walker, P. & Day, R. 1984, Directory of important world honey sources, International Bee Research Association, London, United Kingdom

• Fawcett, W. 1891, Economic plants, An index to economic products of the vegetable kingdom in Jamaica, Jamaica Government Printing Establishment, Kingston

• Florida Department of Environmental Protection 2010, The Florida-Friendly Landscaping Guide to Plant Selection & Landscape Design, 1st ed., University of Florida

• Francis, J. K. 1998, Tree species for planting in forest, rural, and urban areas of Puerto Rico, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry, Río Piedras, Puerto Rico

• Francis, J. K. et al. 2000, Silvics of Native and Exotic Trees of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean Islands, Technical Report IITF-15, USDA Forest Service, Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico

• Gilman, E. F. 1997, Trees for urban and suburban landscapes, Delmar Publishers, Albany, New York

• Little, E. L. et al. 1964 and 1974, Common trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands (2 volumes), Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington D.C.

• Porter, T. 2012, Wood : identification & use, Compact edition, Guild of Master Craftsman Publications, Lewes, East Sussex

• Randall, R. P. 2002, A global compendium of weeds, R.G. and F.J. Richardson Press, Melbourne

• Rauch, F. D. & Weissich, P. R. 2000, Plants for tropical landscapes : a gardener's guide, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu

• Reyes, G. 1992, Wood densities of tropical tree species, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station, New Orleans, Louisiana

• Scheffer, T. C & Morrell, J. J. 1998, Natural durability of wood : a worldwide checklist of species, Forest Research Laboratory, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon

Articles, Journals, Reports and Working Papers

• Morton, J.F. 1964, Honeybee Plants of South Florida, Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural Society, Vol 77:415-436.