Estimating Productivity, Detecting Biotic Disturbances and Assessing the Health State of Traditional Olive Groves, Using Nondestructive Phenotypic Techniques

Conservation of traditional olive groves through effective monitoring of their health state is crucial both at a tree and at a population level. In this study, we introduce a comprehensive methodological framework for estimating the traditional olive grove health state, by considering the fundamental phenotypic, spectral, and thermal traits of the olive trees. We obtained phenotypic information from olive trees on the Greek island of Lesvos by combining this with in situ measurement of spectral reflectance and thermal indices to investigate the effect of the olive tree traits on productivity, the presence of the olive leaf spot disease (OLS), and olive tree classification based on their health state. In this context, we identified a suite of important features, derived from linear and logistic regression models, which can explain productivity and accurately evaluate infected and noninfected trees. The results indicated that either specific traits or combinations of them are statistically significant predictors of productivity, while the occurrence of OLS symptoms can be identified by both the olives’ vitality traits and by the thermal variables. Finally, the classification of olive trees into different health states possibly offers significant information to explain traditional olive grove dynamics for their sustainable management.

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Influence of weed cover on leaf-level CO2 and H2O fluxes in an olive grove

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-5181 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Sergio Aranda-Barranco ◽

Andrew S Kowalski ◽

Penélope Serrano-Ortiz ◽

Enrique P Sánchez-Cañete

Keyword(s):

Random Trees ◽

The Other ◽

Organic Carbon Content ◽

Olive Grove ◽

Weed Cover ◽

Leaf Level ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Ecosystem Level ◽

Olive Trees

The management of olive groves has a direct impact on the environment in the Mediterranean region since it is one of the most representative crops in this area. In order to prevent erosion and improve the physical-chemical conditions of the soil in these crops, the maintenance of weed cover in the alleys is an increasingly common practice. It increases the organic carbon content in the soil, improves biodiversity indices and enhances various ecosystem services such as pollination and infiltration. Now, the role of vegetation cover in olive groves on biogeochemical cycles is being studied. Although previous studies have quantified the combined effect of weed cover and olive trees on carbon and water at ecosystem level, the role of this conservation practice at the leaf level has not yet been explored.The aim of this study is to quantify the effect of weed cover on the net CO2 assimilation (An) and transpiration (T) rates in an irrigated olive grove. To do this, two plots of olive trees with irrigation (Olea europea L. "Arbequina") in southeast Spain were sampled. In the weed-cover one (WC), spontaneous vegetation is maintained until it is mechanically mowed and left in place. In the weed-free (WF) a glyphosate-based herbicide is applied. The data were taken with a portable gas analyzer (LI-6800, Li-Cor) controlling the following environmental variables on olive leaves: atmospheric CO2, relative humidity, photosynthetic active radiation and temperature. One campaign per month was carried out (from January-2018 to January-2019) where 10 random trees were analysed in each treatment. In addition, an eddy covariance tower provided CO2 and H2O fluxes at ecosystem level and they were compared with the fluxes obtained from leaf-level campaigns.The results shown significant differences for T only in the period after mowing with Twc= 2.0 &#177; 0.7 mmol H2O m-2s-1 vs Twf = 2.5 &#177; 1.0 mmol H2O m-2s-1. However, in this period ET is equal in both treatments, which suggests that the alleys with mowed weed has more ET than bare soil in the other treatment. On the other hand, there are significant differences for Anet only in the period before mowing with Anet-wc = 5.5 &#177; 3.1 &#956;mol CO2 m-2s-1 vs Anet-wf = 8.0 &#177; 3.6 &#956;mol CO2 m-2s-1. When the weeds are mowed, Anet is matched in both treatments. However, higher values of NEEwc than NEEwf &#160;are observed in the period before mowing. This suggest that the weed-cover olive groves at ecosystem level take up more carbon when the weed-cover is established although the leaves of olive trees are capturing less CO2.

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Effect of sustainable management of olive tree residues on soil fertility in irrigated and rain-fed olive orchards

Journal of Water and Climate Change ◽

10.2166/wcc.2018.143 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 764-774 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

V. Kavvadias ◽

M. Papadopoulou ◽

E. Vavoulidou ◽

S. Theocharopoulos ◽

G. Koubouris ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Fertility ◽

Soil Properties ◽

Management Practices ◽

Conservation Tillage ◽

Experimental Period ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Tree Canopy ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Olive Trees

Abstract Olive trees are a major source of agricultural residues. Strategies based on different management of organic amendments have been reported to increase soil fertility. The effect of sustainable organic matter input practices (application of shredded pruning residue and olive residue compost to soil) on soil properties in irrigated and rain-fed olive groves was investigated. The study took place in 40 olive groves in the region of Peza, island of Crete, Greece during a 5-year period (2012–2017). The results showed that olive trees play an important role in soil nutrient conservation under semi-arid conditions in the Mediterranean basin. The addition of olive tree residues, in combination with conservation tillage practices, improved soil fertility over the experimental period. Most of the soil properties were favored by irrigation. In olive soil parcels receiving organic materials the soil organic matter and the total nitrogen were increased in irrigated fields. The ability of surface soil to sequester carbon and nutrients beneath the tree canopy of olive groves was high. It is recommended that sustainable soil management practices should consider soil fertility variability of olive orchards.

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Assessment of aerial and underground vibration transmission in mechanically trunk shaken olive trees

Journal of Agricultural Engineering ◽

10.4081/jae.2018.788 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 49 (3) ◽

pp. 191-197 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ruben R. Sola-Guirado ◽

Bruno Bernardi ◽

Sergio Castro-García ◽

Gregorio L. Blanco-Roldán ◽

Souraya Benalia ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Compaction ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Dynamic Resistance ◽

Vibration Transmission ◽

Coarse Root ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Operational Frequency ◽

Olive Trees ◽

Dominant Vibration Frequency ◽

Soil Dynamic

The present study analyses the transmission of vibrations generated from a multidirectional trunk shaker to olive tree structure considering both the aerial zone (trunk and branches) and the underground zone (the coarse root). The vibration characterization was conducted by measuring acceleration on several points of the tree during harvesting operations. The influence of two different heights of shaker head clamping was analysed. In addition, a dynamic probing was performed in order to evaluate soil compaction. The results showed that the vibration performed by the trunk shaker head, corresponding to an acceleration resultant of approximately 77 ms–2 with a dominant vibration frequency of 18 Hz, increased up to 106% in branches and decreased up to 90% in trunks. At root level, where the analysis was carried out at 1/3 and 2/3 of the coarse root length, the acceleration values diminished significantly to 17 ms–2 and 12 ms–2, respectively. Soil dynamic resistance was lower (36 kg cm–2) near the trees than between the trees (53 kg cm–2). The vibration transmission to the aerial and the underground parts diversely influences the dynamic behaviour of the olive tree, considering an operational frequency of a commercial trunk shaker. The assessment of vibration transmission to the aerial part could contribute to improve fruit detachment and reduce branch breaking and leaf detachment. While vibration transmission to the underground part rises new challenges considering soil compaction in olive groves.

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The Ecology and History of the Mediterranean Olive Grove: The Spanish Great Expansion, 1750 - 2000

Rural History ◽

10.1017/s0956793312000052 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 23 (2) ◽

pp. 161-184 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

JUAN INFANTE-AMATE

Keyword(s):

Large Scale ◽

Olive Grove ◽

Crop Cultivation ◽

Industrial Enterprises ◽

History Of ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Olive Trees ◽

Peasant Farmers ◽

Changing Role

AbstractThis article argues that the landscape dominated by olive groves that is now seen as characteristic of southern Spain is a relatively recent phenomenon. In the eighteenth, nineteenth and much of the twentieth century, olives were not an industrial crop, grown on a large scale for the production of oil. Instead, olive trees were largely grown by small peasant farmers and used to produce timber and fodder as well as foodstuffs, forming one component of a diverse peasant economy. This article will analyse the changing role of the olive within the landscape of the Spanish Mediterranean, and explore the process by which production moved towards single crop cultivation by large industrial enterprises.

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Analysis of the Work Productivity and Costs of a Stationary Chipper Applied to the Harvesting of Olive Tree Pruning for Bio-Energy Production

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13061359 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (6) ◽

pp. 1359 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Alessandro Suardi ◽

Francesco Latterini ◽

Vincenzo Alfano ◽

Nadia Palmieri ◽

Simone Bergonzoli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Energy Production ◽

Work Productivity ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Machine Performance ◽

Harvesting Systems ◽

Biomass Resources ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Pruning Residues ◽

Olive Trees

Pruning residues could represent an important biomass resources for energy production. Only in Italy it has been estimated that an annual quantity of biomass of over 2600 kt of dry matter could be obtained from olive residues. Several machines developed for pruning harvesting are available in the market, most of which are tractor-driven, while limited knowledge is available on performance, quality of work and costs of harvesting logistics based on stationary chippers. The aim of the present paper is to analyze machine performance of a forestry stationary chipper applied to pruning harvesting for what concerns work productivity, quality of the comminuted product and harvesting operating costs. This system is actually applied by Fiusis Company, an Italian enterprise which manages a biomass power plant exclusively powered by olive trees’ pruning residues, and it has never been analyzed in literature. The results obtained showed consistent work productivity, which resulted the highest ever found in olive pruning harvesting systems and equal to 5.23 ± 0.81 tdm·h−1. This high work productivity allowed also to obtain a little economic gain from a matter, which is actually considered a problem for olive groves’ owners and not a potential source of income. In particular, the use of a stationary chipper seemed very efficient in olive groves with a consistent amount of wooden residues to be processed and with big branches not harvestable by the most common towed pruning harvester. In addition, the stationary chipper has the advantage of avoiding the preliminary raking operation, which results in reduced costs for the farmer.

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Soil water content and olive tree yield responses to soil management, irrigation, and precipitation in a hilly Mediterranean area

Journal of Water and Climate Change ◽

10.2166/wcc.2018.224 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 672-678 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

G. Arampatzis ◽

E. Hatzigiannakis ◽

V. Pisinaras ◽

N. Kourgialas ◽

G. Psarras ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Content ◽

Soil Water ◽

Soil Water Content ◽

Soil Management ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Mediterranean Area ◽

Mediterranean Countries ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Intensively Managed ◽

Olive Trees

Abstract Olive trees constitute one of the most dynamic cultivations for Mediterranean countries, while their economic importance is high. As water constitutes a fundamental factor affecting olive tree production, soil water content is a most critical parameter that must be monitored to improve olive trees’ cultivation management. Effects of precipitation, irrigation, and soil management on water content in four soil depths (10, 20, 30, 40 cm), four periods of the year (February–March, April–May, June–July, August–September) and three successive years were determined in 12 Mediterranean olive groves (Trifilia, southern Greece) as well as their respective fruit and olive oil yields. Significantly higher soil water content was recorded in the first (+16.8%) and third (+27.4%) year compared to the second year. Higher (+6.8%) water content was observed in irrigated olive groves compared to rainfed fields. Higher (+5.6%) water content was observed in sustainable olive groves compared to intensively managed fields. Significantly, higher soil moisture was recorded at 40 and 30 cm depth compared to 10 cm depth while intermediate values were observed at 20 cm. Marked increase in fruit yield was achieved through sustainable management (+39%) compared to intensive olive groves. The potential to improve irrigation practices in the area was also indicated by results of the present study.

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Moving toward the north? The spatial shift of olive groves in Italy

Agricultural Economics (Zemědělská ekonomika) ◽

10.17221/467/2020-agricecon ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 67 (No. 4) ◽

pp. 129-135

Author(s):

Filippo Gambella ◽

Leonardo Bianchini ◽

Massimo Cecchini ◽

Gianluca Egidi ◽

Agostino Ferrara ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Northern Region ◽

Significant Shift ◽

Tree Distribution ◽

The North ◽

Spatial Shift ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Local Warming ◽

Olive Trees

Southern Europe is becoming a hotspot for climate change. Appropriate mechanisation is necessary for reducing soil compacting in such contexts. The olive tree distribution – a typical Mediterranean crop – showed a well-defined latitude gradient with progressive decline moving towards the north. Climate change, however, has supposed to cause a significant shift towards the north in the geographical range of olive trees. Our study analyses the spatial distribution of the olive tree area in Italy, a region within the species' ecological range apart from the Northern region, which is now becoming progressively specialised in this crop because of local warming. Results indicate that olive cultivated area increased in Northern Italy, especially in flat districts and upland areas, while decreasing (more or less rapidly) in central and southern Italy because of land abandonment.

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Analysis, Modeling and Multi-Spectral Sensing for the Predictive Management of Verticillium Wilt in Olive Groves

Journal of Sensor and Actuator Networks ◽

10.3390/jsan10010015 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 15

Author(s):

Kostas Blekos ◽

Anastasios Tsakas ◽

Christos Xouris ◽

Ioannis Evdokidis ◽

Dimitris Alexandropoulos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Verticillium Wilt ◽

Multispectral Imaging ◽

Machine Learning Techniques ◽

Olive Grove ◽

Early Stages ◽

Natural Minerals ◽

Learning Techniques ◽

Olive Groves ◽

Olive Trees ◽

Spectral Sensing

The intensification and expansion in the cultivation of olives have contributed to the significant spread of Verticillium wilt, which is the most important fungal problem affecting olive trees. Recent studies confirm that practices such as the use of innovative natural minerals (Zeoshell ZF1) and the application of beneficial microorganisms (Micosat F BS WP) restore health in infected trees. However, for their efficient implementation the above methodologies require the marking of trees in the early stages of infestation—a task that is impractical with traditional means (manual labor) but also very difficult, as early stages are difficult to perceive with the naked eye. In this paper, we present the results of the My Olive Grove Coach (MyOGC) project, which used multispectral imaging from unmanned aerial vehicles to develop an olive grove monitoring system based on the autonomous and automatic processing of the multispectral images using computer vision and machine learning techniques. The goal of the system is to monitor and assess the health of olive groves, help in the prediction of Verticillium wilt spread and implement a decision support system that guides the farmer/agronomist.

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Reproductive Biology of Olive Trees (Arbequina cultivar) at the Northern Limit of Their Distribution Areas

Forests ◽

10.3390/f12020204 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 204

Author(s):

Alejandro Garrido ◽

María Fernández-González ◽

Rosa A. Vázquez-Ruiz ◽

F. Javier Rodríguez-Rajo ◽

María J. Aira

Keyword(s):

Reproductive Biology ◽

Pollen Grains ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Growing Degree Days ◽

Olive Grove ◽

Degree Days ◽

Vegetative Period ◽

Main Pollen Season ◽

Pollen Concentrations ◽

Olive Trees

In recent years, North-western Spain has experienced an increase in the cultivated area of olive trees. The main propitious areas for olive groves are the Miño and Sil basins, as a consequence of their Oceanic climate with Mediterranean influence. The objective of this study is to determine the characteristics of reproductive biology, phenological and aerobiological behaviour of olive trees in the most northerly new plantation areas of the Iberian Peninsula. The study was carried out in an olive grove growing Olea europaea L. cv. ‘Arbequina’ located in Quiroga (Lugo) from 2016 to 2018. The phenological observations were based upon the main growth stages following the Biologische Bundesanstalt Bundessortenamt and Chemical industry (BBCH) scale. To predict the onset of flowering, a thermal time model was used in order to quantify the chill requirements, and growing degree-days were applied to determine the heat requirement. The production, viability and germination rates of Olea pollen were evaluated from samples selected in nine individual trees for the phenological survey. The aerobiological study was conducted by means of a Hirst-type pollen trap located in the centre of the olive grove. The vegetative period of the olive tree in the study area lasted an average of 259 days. The important phenological stage 6 (flowering) was the shortest stage. An average of 704 Chilling Hours (CH) with a threshold of 2.5 °C was required to overcome the chilling period, 1139 Growing Degree Days (GDD) for the beginning of flowering, and 4463 GDD for harvest. The pollen production per anther was 82589 grains (± 14084 pollen grains), with a rate of 81% viability and 12% pollen tube germination. The main pollen season started on average on May 20th and ended on June 16th with an average duration of 27 days and an annual pollen integral of 833 pollen grains. The low pollen concentrations could be a consequence of the Northern location of the forest, in a bioclimatic transition zone between the Eurosiberian and the Mediterranean areas, at the limit of olive tree distribution.

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Every Olive Tree in the Garden of Gethsemane

Departures in Critical Qualitative Research ◽

10.1525/dcqr.2014.3.2.111 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 111-115 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Wendy Babcox

Keyword(s):

Olive Tree ◽

Photographic Images ◽

The Future ◽

Olive Trees ◽

The Many ◽

Radical Transformation

Every Olive Tree in the Garden of Gethsemane is a suite of photographic images of each of the twenty-three olive trees in the garden. Situated at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, the Garden of Gethsemane is known to many as the site where Jesus and his disciples prayed the night before his crucifixion. The oldest trees in the garden date to 1092 and are recognized as some of the oldest olive trees in existence. The older trees are a living and symbolic connection to the distant past, while younger trees serve as a link to the future. The gnarled trunks seem written with the many conflicts that have been waged in an effort to control this most-contested city; a city constantly on the threshold of radical transformation.

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