Essay Example on Olea europaea is the major cultivated species among all Monophyletic

Olea europaea is the major cultivated species among all monophyletic oleaceae family olea genus include 30 species and extensively spread in Europe Asia Africa and Oceania aa There is an assumption that cultivars starred in wild Mediterranean olive and then carried with human through their migration to all Mediterranean neighboring countries And the common features between the wild and cultivated forms reach to new cultivars in the Mediterranean surrounding countries cc Right now more than 2000 cultivars show huge variety depend on fruit shape and pit size dd Cultivar is identified based on morphology and agricultural characters but it is hard in the plant development early stages In old times the variety between olive tree cultivars is identified by estimating the differences regarding leaf shape color and fruit shape This identification is easy and applicable not complicated and don t need special equipment and the easiest way for recognition of olive tree is phenotype ee Olea europaea L is considered one of the most crucial trees in the Mediterranean basin and the most ancient tree to be cultivated ff Olive also is the sixth most important oil crop in the world and spread from the Mediterranean area to new areas due to the plant high economic and nutritional value The Mediterranean area is the oldest cultivation area of olive and have 95 of olive plants of the world From the Mediterranean basin it extend to other regions of 

Most cultivars of O europaea subsp europaea need a period of vernalisation for 6 11 weeks below 9 C which ends 40 60 days before anthesis The initial elongation growth is rapid particularly in the warmer growing regions At temperatures above 30 C in mid summer mid July the vegetative growth rate drops When there is enough moisture in the soil or under irrigated conditions a short second period of growth could occur in the autumn with the reduction in daily temperatures Thus different types of growth curves of olive trees have been recorded in accordance with the thermal conditions in the summer In most regions the bearing olive tree has a double peak growth curve O europaea subsp europaea is strong biennial bearer and a heavy fruit load in one year inhibits adequate shoot extension necessary for the following year s bearing wood and vice versa In non bearing trees a continuous but uneven flush of growth takes place along the whole March October period The reproductive process leading to spring flowering starts in the preceding summers The young buds present in the axial of each leaf on sprouts born in spring are undifferentiated In summer environmental factors interact with the tree physiology to start the floral induction process Once induction is under way floral initiation only occurs by the end of autumn after which flower parts form Eventually these can be seen with a microscope 

The buds not induced become vegetative buds Unlike deciduous fruits with a short induction to initiation cycle induction in olive may occur as early as July or about 6 weeks after full bloom whereas initiation is not easily seen until 8 months later in February Floral differentiation takes place between late December and bloom in May June when the formation of each flower part occurs in the inflorescence The pollination of the olive is carried out mainly by wind Growth and fruit development in olive also depends on climate beginning in September and normally ending in November Olives are picked late in autumn or winter as the oil content and fruit characteristics change with ripening Environmental variability may be more important than genetic variability for several traits including oil content and quality The chemical components for example polyphenols aliphatic alcohols triterpenic alcohols sterols and fatty acids that determine oil quality vary according to cultivar and year of cultivation Rainfall is one of the predominant factors affecting oil quality Irrigation may also affect the variability in oil quality According to Van der Vossen et al 2007 the commercial lifespan of an olive tree is 50 years but individual trees can become very old hundreds of years