Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Friday - June 29, 2012

From: Chappell Hill, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Non-Natives, Trees
Title: a source for fruitless olive (non-native) trees
Answered by: Guy Thompson

QUESTION:

I was given a "mexican olive" several years ago which is doing very well. This one is non-fruiting and I would like to have another that is non-fruiting but cannot find one. Cordia boissieri seems to be the only plant name but all those I find have fruit. Is there a variety that does not fruit?

ANSWER:

I  have not been able to find a source for fruitless olives in your vicinity.  What you have may indeed be Cordia boissieri, but it could also be a totally different olive species, such as Swan Hill Olive ®, grown on the Olea europaea cv, "Oblonga" rootstock.  This latter tree is the most popular of several related fruitless olive species.  Other cultivars are Wilsonii and Majestic Beauty.  Texas nurserymen are very enterprising, and I suspect that if these fruitless olives were well suited for Texas they would be more widely available.  Their absence is likely due to their cold sensitivity.  C. boissieri is said to survive only down to 20 degrees F., and O. europaea will be lost at 28-26 degrees F.  Your tree must be in a well protected spot, or you have just been lucky with the weather.

I am not very familiar with these non-native trees since our specialty is native plants.  You can find more information at nursery sites in Arizona and California.  You can probably mail-order trees from there.  However, I think it would be risky to try and grow these species.  Over the next few years we are likely to have at least one really cold spell that could take them out.

You might want to consider planting a cold-hardy native tree that has a growth habit similar to the olives.  I could suggest Ebenopsis ebano (Texas ebony), Diospyros texana (Texas persimmon), Sophora secundiflora (Texas mountain laurel), or Ilex vomitoria (Yaupon).  If you visit the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center web site of plant suppliers and enter your zip code or address you will find names of local native plant suppliers.

Shown below are images of the native trees that I recommend.

 

 

From the Image Gallery


Texas ebony
Ebenopsis ebano

Texas persimmon
Diospyros texana

Texas mountain laurel
Sophora secundiflora

Yaupon
Ilex vomitoria

More Trees Questions

Buds disappearing from magnolia in New Jersey
February 04, 2012 - I live in New Jersey.I planted my 5.gal Vulcan magnolia in December. It came with 4 big buds and 3 small buds.I planted in good location where it gets lots of sun. The tree is well settled and looked ...
view the full question and answer

Problem with oak trees in Mansfield, Texas
September 26, 2010 - We have lost 2 large oaks last year & now another is nearly gone. It has several large patches of missing bark - beneath a thin layer of skin-like membrane that seemed to separate it from the bark i...
view the full question and answer

Caterpillars ate my Sophora in La Mesa, CA.
July 06, 2011 - Before I noticed what was happening, my newly-planted 1 foot tall Sophora secundiflora was eaten by caterpillars. It now has no foliage. Do you think it will leaf out again?
view the full question and answer

Runaway growth on mountain laurel in Coolidge AZ
July 01, 2010 - I have 2 mountain laurels. They are thriving well. In fact one is growing way too fast. I am growing it as a tree, but the branches are in excess of 6 feet, while the trunk is only 18 or so inches. I ...
view the full question and answer

Failure to thrive of one Desert Willow in Phoenix AZ
September 06, 2013 - We planted 4 desert willow trees in the summer and 3 of the 4 are doing excellent, however the last one is not not doing so well, it was the smallest of all and it started out fine but its leaves bega...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.