poorskeleton

I wish I'd taken some photos, but yes that is definitely what they do in Andalucia and Mallorca and elsewhere for all I know. Hmmm... seems like I should maybe start adopting a healthier lifestyle. They say olive oil is good for you, don't they?...

I agree, and that's precisely the look I'm trying to achieve. Incidentally, I have noticed in Spain (and possibly elsewhere) they usually plant three or four trees very close together and they grow into one another (adding to the gnarly look). Why is this done?

Thanks for all the help so far. The latest news is that there are a few shoots sprouting from the trunk of the tree, so there is clearly still some life left in it. I plan to leave it alone and see how much new growth there is over the summer, and then prune to just above that, hopefully to salvage a tree with a good shape. (Frustratingly, I only commented what a good shape the tree was a few weeks before the leaves started turning brown!) Cheers Chris

Thanks for the replies so far - much appreciated. I'm in Cambridge (UK) so the climate here is quite mild and not overly rainy. I fear I may have over-watered and then over-fed in compensation. For now the olive is in a south-facing spot, so hopefully relatively conducive to its recovery. I did take a nick out of the tree a while ago and it seemed green, so I concluded it was in with a chance of survival. I'll try again and see how it seems now. Thanks again for all the help - I'll keep you posted. All the best Chris

Hi, I was recommended this forum for expert advice, but I feel a bit intrusive posting here. I hope I'm not out of order in doing so. I have a grown from seed olive tree, about 1.5m tall which, in the autumn of 2014, started developing a few copper-coloured leaves. This became more widespread over the winter and last year and by the end of the summer the tree had shed all of its leaves. I had resigned myself to having to get rid of it, but thought it worth waiting until this summer in case it revived in any way. Much to my surprise, it has and there are now four suckers (is that the right terminology?) sprouting from the room. As this was grown from seed I'm really keen to keep it alive in any way I can, so my questions (finally) are: At this point can I assume the original tree is dead, and would it be best to cut it away, or prune it substantially? Would it be better to cut away the suckers to encourage the original growth to revive? Should I get rid of all but one of the suckers? Any general advice as to how to make the most of this situation? For future reference (I have another, even more mature, but less attractive Olive, also grown from seed) what might have been the cause of the original discolouring and eventual leaf loss and how might I avoid/respond to it if I see it in the future? As I said, I hope I'm not out of line posting here, and I'm certainly really appreciative of any advice I might receive. All the best Chris