Olives

[cappuccino]

So, my olive trees are showing quite a lot of fruit. Any experienced gardeners here who can advise me on the following:
a) best time to pick them (internet search says June/July but I have quite a lot of fruit already - shall I really wait another month or will the birds get them first?)
b) when I do pick them, what is the best way of curing/pickling them - I have found several 'recipes' online but would love to hear of personal experiences.

[norma]

I've no experience of olive picking or curing, but I have noticed a lot of people around Devonport over the last few weeks out picking the ones growing along the streets. So may be now is the time.

KiwiMac may be able to offer some advice - I think he's mentioned he has olives.

[langers]

Kiwimac, is this you

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/fo...Kiwi-olive-oil

if so, well done

[Kiwi Mac]

So, my olive trees are showing quite a lot of fruit. Any experienced gardeners here who can advise me on the following:
a) best time to pick them (internet search says June/July but I have quite a lot of fruit already - shall I really wait another month or will the birds get them first?)
b) when I do pick them, what is the best way of curing/pickling them - I have found several 'recipes' online but would love to hear of personal experiences.

I have 1200 olive trees. My advice is chainsaw the lot and burn them as firewood!! Flipping things. We had 7,500kg off them last year which went into a local producer's oil.

[Kiwi Mac]

Kiwimac, is this you

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/fo...Kiwi-olive-oil

if so, well done

No - we just sell ours to an established brand (not that one but it has the number 8 in the title...!). My ego does not need an olive oil label to prop it up...!

[Kiwi Mac]

So, my olive trees are showing quite a lot of fruit. Any experienced gardeners here who can advise me on the following:
a) best time to pick them (internet search says June/July but I have quite a lot of fruit already - shall I really wait another month or will the birds get them first?)
b) when I do pick them, what is the best way of curing/pickling them - I have found several 'recipes' online but would love to hear of personal experiences.

If you really want to pick them...wait until they have 'traffic light' colouring (part red, part green and part black). Watch out for the starlings and the Waxeyes/Silvereyes coz they will eat em. You can net the trees if they are not too big/too many.

Pickling them is time consuming - salty water changed every 24 hours for a week then into clean jars with more salty water (not as salty as the other water) with any other spices etc, float oil on top to seal and do the lids up tight.

You may find them salty when you come to eat them - leave them in fresh water overnight before eating. That seems to help. Lots of people like them salty though, we have found.