The Mission olive is a

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

developed in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, by Spanish missions along El Camino Real in the late 18th century. The Mission olive has been included in the

Ark of Taste The Ark of Taste is an international catalogue of endangered heritage foods which is maintained by the global Slow Food movement. The Ark is designed to preserve at-risk foods that are sustainably produced, unique in taste, and part of a distinct ...

, an international catalog of endangered

heritage foods Heritage Foods Limited (commonly known as Heritage Foods) is one of the largest private sector dairy enterprises in Southern India. History The Heritage Group was founded in 1992 by Telugu Desam Party Chief and former Chief Minister of Andhr ...

maintained by the Slow Food movement. It is also the only American olive cultivar listed by the International Olive Council in its World Catalogue of Olive Varieties. Although developed in the United States, Mission olives are also used by

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

olive oil Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...

producers.

Description

Mission trees can reach heights of . They produce small fruit, typically of around . It has the lowest flesh-to-pit ratio (6.5:1) and greatest cold resistance of any commercial cultivar in California. Mission olives are harvested for table use from late October through November; for oil production, they are harvested between mid-December and February. They are susceptible to peacock spot, a disease caused by the fungus '' Cycloconium oleaginum'', and olive knot, a disease caused by the bacterium ''

Pseudomonas savastanoi ''Pseudomonas savastanoi'' is a gram-negative plant pathogenic bacterium that infects a variety of plants. It was once considered a pathovar of ''Pseudomonas syringae,'' but following DNA-relatedness studies, it was instated as a new species. It ...

''.

Uses

Mission olives are one of five cultivars (along with Ascolano, Barouni, Manzanilla, and

Sevillana ''Sevillanas'' () are a type of folk music and dance of Sevilla and its region. They were derived from the Seguidilla, an old Castilian folk music and dance genre. In the nineteenth century they were influenced by Flamenco. They have a relati ...

) commercially viable in California for production as table olives. They have also been used in the production of

since the days of the Spanish missions.

Prevalence

In 1992, the Mission cultivar represented just over eight percent of California's overall olive acreage. Mission olives were dominant until 1875, when

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...

n immigrants introduced the Manzanilla cultivar; subsequent introductions further reduced the percentage of Mission trees in California. After Manzanilla and Sevillana, however, it remains one of the more common cultivars in the state. The Oroville district in Butte County is a major Mission producer.

Origin

Olive trees were first brought to California by the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

mission of San Diego de Alcalá; olive production likely began in earnest within the first two decades of the mission. The original trees suffered after the secularization of the missions, though pioneers cultivated new trees from their cuttings, leading to the distinct Mission cultivar. Though researchers at the University of Córdoba presumed the Mission olive to be of Spanish origin, they were unable to establish its relationship with any of 700 Spanish cultivars. Recent DNA testing in California suggests the Mission olive could be related to Picholine Marocaine, a Moroccan cultivar. Spanish settlers likely brought what would become the Mission trees to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

first.

References

{{olives Olive cultivars Food and drink in California Agriculture in California

Description

Uses

Prevalence

Origin

See also

References