The Tiniest Big Event Ever

Have you ever looked back on some small event that in retrospect was really a much bigger deal than it appeared at the time?  That is exactly what happened here recently.  This past month, for the first time, we actually picked some olives from a few of our 100 olive trees.  There were only a very few trees that produced because the deer snuck up on us during the winter and before we realized what was happening, they had eaten all the new growth on which would come blooms and fruit in the spring.  It was a huge disappointment but we decided to work with what we have so we could learn more about the oil extraction process and be better prepared for next year.

We never expected to have an olive oil business but just wanted to enjoy the beauty of the trees and perhaps have some olive oil that we pressed ourselves.  There have been many ups and downs over the years with cold temperatures, malfunctioning irrigation lines and above all, the deer wanting to snack on the tender young trees.  It does feel as though we have had to fight to get to this point every step of the way.  And every time we pruned or fertilized, we were unsure if we were actually doing it correctly or not.

It’s not a well known fact that there was an olive oil industry here in Georgia from its earliest times.  In fact, I was able to see some approximately 100 plus year old olive trees at Cumberland Island on my visit there earlier this year.  When labor became too scarce to keep up with the harvesting and processing, that industry dwindled but has more recently come back with the help of newer technologies.  There are soon to be thousands of acres of olive trees here in our state and we will begin to have access to a much higher quality of olive oil.  

So, it wasn’t a huge leap of faith to think our trees could grow well in the type of soil and climate we have.  Once again, the soil we have here seems to produce beautifully with everything we plant.  It’s mostly the critters that give us problems.

We learned several things as we ground, stirred and pressed our little mound of olives even though there was virtually no final product to enjoy.  As a result, we will hopefully be better prepared next year.  It was a very big tiny event to finally see a glimpse of the ultimate goal we set four years ago and we are encouraged to keep at it as we get closer to the desired outcome.  Maybe one year soon, we will have enough to host a harvest gathering and bring in friends and family to work and celebrate with us.  I can just imagine a long table set in the yard for guests to enjoy after picking buckets of olives!  Scenes from movies I’ve seen keep playing in my mind. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.