Olea europea 'Leccino' is a robust cold hardy olive tree known for its graceful silver green foliage and high quality oil production. This Tuscan cultivar is prized for its adaptability and productivity featuring narrow gray leaves, gnarled bark, and small fragrant white blooms that appear in late spring. Though self fertile, it performs best when paired with other varieties for cross pollination and increased yield.
Height & Spread: 15 - 30 ft x 15 - 25 ft
Bloom Time: Late spring
Light Requirements: Full sun
Soil Preference: Well drained, slightly alkaline soils
Watering Needs: Low to moderate; allow to dry between deep waterings
Deer Resistance: Generally deer resistant due to leathery aromatic foliage
Native Status
Native to the Mediterranean basin, Olea europea has been cultivated for thousands of years and naturalized in various warm climates worldwide. 'Leccino' is a long established Italian selection adapted for orchard and ornamental use.
WILDLIFE & INSECTS
Birds
- Olive fruits attract mockingbirds, cedar waxwings, and starlings when ripe while dense foliage provides cover and nesting spots.
Bees
- While wind pollinated its late spring blossoms may offer incidental pollen to honeybees and solitary bees.
Beneficial Insects
- Attracts predatory wasps and lacewings that shelter among the leaves and help manage scale insects and aphids.
Spacing & Landscape Use
Spacing Recommendations:
- Allow 15 - 25 ft between trees in orchards or 8 - 12 ft when used as a hedge or screen.
Landscape Placement:
- Ideal for Mediterranean themed gardens, container patios, or as a sculptural focal point in dry landscape plantings.
Companion Plants
- Teucrium chamaedrys (Wall Germander) - Dense mounding subshrub with pink flowers and rich green leaves complements the olive's silvery tones.
- Thymus serpyllum (Creeping Thyme) - Low mat forming herb with lavender pink flowers fills space at the base and tolerates full sun drought.
- Lavandula angustifolia 'Hidcote' - Compact purple blooms and aromatic foliage thrive in the same dry sunny conditions as olive trees.
- Salvia officinalis 'Berggarten' - Broad leaved sage with dusty gray foliage mirrors olive coloration while offering culinary and ornamental value.
- Rosmarinus officinalis 'Arp' - Cold hardy rosemary adds evergreen texture and seasonal blue flowers beneath the canopy.