Is my olive tree dying?

Gate 13

Hi,
I live in Katy, Texas. If you do not know the climate is warm and humid but we have a beautiful weather from October till April or May....mild winters but very hot and humid summers.

I planted two little olive trees(I do not know the kind) in May 2009 and one year and a half almost after that they are still very little. I know that especially olive trees are very slow growing.
The one tree though is full of branches and healthy leaves, the other tree has almost the 60% of the leaves turned yellow and dropped and the tree looks unhealthy.
I will try to post a picture of my tree if this is permitted.
My question is: I noticed that the springler that is turned on for the grass every other day for about 3-4 minutes while moving it sprays the olive tree (the unhealthy one)...can this be a reason why it looks so bad? Should I cover the tree when the springler is on?
My next question: I purchased an ORTHO VLOCK OIL SPRAY for my citrus trees and nectarine trees. Will it help if I spray the olive tree as well? It is an insect killer?
If not what is the best medicine to use at this stage for the olive trees in order to save its life?
The temperature for now and for the next few weeks will be between 30 degrees Celsius in daytime and about 15 degrees Celsius at night (or even colder)
Please advise. Any tips regarding care or medicines suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

dov

It's hard to say without pictures, but the affected Olive could be sunburnt. What time does the sprinkler turn on?

Gate 13

Is there a way to post pictures inside a thread?

Gate 13

During midnight around 1am....

dov

Then I doubt it's sunburn! Does it receive too much water? How is the ground it's in? Soggy?

Garry Brockley

We need pictures to really help you out, other wise it's just conjecture.

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Woody Weeder

If it's not dying, try a few frills with the axe and get some diesel/garlon into the cuts!

Seriously though, about 50% of my work is getting rid of olives. They are a real pest here in South Australia - a "Declared Weed" (although unfortunately deliberately planted ones are not considered weeds).

Hopefully they don't cause problems where you are and you get some fruit when they eventually mature

dov

A weed in SA? Wow. Just planted one in the backyard here. They're becoming a lot more popular lately here in Melbourne as ornamental trees.

Woody Weeder

Yeah they are particularly bad in the foothills around the city - they can cover entire paddocks and crowd out the native scrub. There are many old olive groves that caused the problem, some of these are now heritage listed.
We try to concerntrate on the ones spreading in the good vegetation.
The most annoying thing is going back to olives that have resprouted after being poorly treated the first time. You can't just squirt the cut stumps or bang a few holes in and fill em with juice - they won't die. Just look at the work the Correctional Services boys do - it would be better if they just sat under the tree and let us do it properly! Not their fault though, they just take a lot of effort to do properly.

Woody Weeder

And regarding the climate thing - they come from the Meditteranean so the climate they are from is similar to yours G-13. We get hot summers here - up to 44c, and mild winters - down to a few degrees at night in winter. Hot weather won't bother them, just look at the "waxy" thick leaves and dark green colour - designed to save water.
They seem to grow well in all soil types we have here from sand near the beach, clay in the foot hills and loam with clay in the hills.

Gate 13

I will post pictures soon.
I am desperate....I see it dying day by day...
: the few leaves that are still on the tree turn yellow gradually and fall......

I sprayed them with ORTHO VLOCK OIL SPRAY and I inserted a fertilizer spike one foot away from the young olive tree one week ago

Are there any medicines that I can use for olive trees? I mean, even if I dont know what the problem is, can you give me an advice, medicine suggestion etc?
Even if I apply the wrong drug, it shouldn't kill the tree, right?
Please help!
Thanks

Gate 13

file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Dimitris%20%20Sellountos/Desktop/IMG_2183.jpg

file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Dimitris%20%20Sellountos/Desktop/IMG_2179%20%282%29.JPG

Gate 13

I don't know how to post pictures
sorry

Gate 13

I hope I attached them right

Attached Thumbnails

   

Gate 13

Just for your information:

Olive Tree Growers - The Care and Feeding of Olive Trees


I am glad there are people that really know about trees.

irishjoy

Having irrigation spraying directly on foliage or trunk can cause many problems to trees. Fungal diseases will thrive on the leaves when moist all night. I suggest you change time of watering to closer to daylight so the sun will dry the leaves before disease grows and if you can change the heads to spray lower or mulch the area around your trees and connect in a drip system instead of spray. The short watering time bothers me also, better to water longer and less often to cause the roots to grow deeper. It sounds like you are only teasing them with a few minutws. Cheers, Carson (certified arborist)

Brent Ferris

I agree with the amount of water. 3-4 minutes does nothing, dig in the soil, after watering and see how deep the water penetrated. IF the roots are 12 inches down, watering for 1- 2 hours might be necessary, depending on the soil.,
Can't comment on the oil spray, but the fertilizer spike so close to the trunk would be like you dumping a salt shaker on your dinner before eating, especially with so little water,

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