Mission olive
{{Short description|Olive cultivar}}
{{Infobox olive cultivar
| name = Mission
| image =
| caption =
| color = Green
| also_called = California Mission
| origin = California
| regions =
| hazards = Cycloconium oleaginum fungus
Pseudomonas savastanoi bacterium
| use = Oil and table
| oil_content = 21.8%
| fertility =
| growth =
| leaf =
| weight =
| shape =
| symmetry =
}}
The Mission olive is a cultivar of olive developed in California, by Spanish missions along El Camino Real in the late 18th century.{{cite news |title=Are Mission Olives Actually Picholine Marocaine? |first=Liliana |last=Scarafia |url=http://www.oliveoiltimes.com/opinion/are-mission-olives-actually-picholine-marocaine/29732 |newspaper=The Olive Oil Times |date=18 October 2012 |accessdate=25 February 2013}} The Mission olive has been included in the Ark of Taste, an international catalog of endangered heritage foods maintained by the Slow Food movement.{{cite web |url=http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/programs/ark_product_detail/california_mission_olive/ |title=Ark of Taste: California Mission Olive |publisher=Slow Food USA |accessdate=25 February 2013}} It is also the only American olive cultivar listed by the International Olive Council in its World Catalogue of Olive Varieties. Although developed in the United States, Mission olives are also used by South African olive oil producers.{{cite web |url=http://www.oliveoiltimes.com/cultivar/mission |title=Mission Olive Oils - Olive Oil Guide |work=The Olive Oil Times |accessdate=25 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313042742/http://www.oliveoiltimes.com/cultivar/mission |archive-date=13 March 2013 |url-status=dead }}
Description
Mission trees can reach heights of {{convert|40|and|50|ft|m}}.{{cite book |last=Sutter |first=Ellen G. |editor1-first=Louise |editor1-last=Ferguson |editor2-first=G. Steven |editor2-last=Sibbett |editor3-first=George C. |editor3-last=Martin |title=Olive Production Manual |chapter=Olive cultivars and propagation |year=1994 |publisher=University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources |location=Oakland, CA |isbn=1879906155 |oclc=30312488 |page=24}} They produce small fruit, typically of around {{convert|4.1|g}}. It has the lowest flesh-to-pit ratio (6.5:1) and greatest cold resistance of any commercial cultivar in California. Mission olives are harvested for table use from late October through November; for oil production, they are harvested between mid-December and February. They are susceptible to peacock spot, a disease caused by the fungus Cycloconium oleaginum, and olive knot, a disease caused by the bacterium Pseudomonas savastanoi.{{cite book |last=Sutter |first=Ellen G. |editor1-first=Louise |editor1-last=Ferguson |editor2-first=G. Steven |editor2-last=Sibbett |editor3-first=George C. |editor3-last=Martin |title=Olive Production Manual |chapter=Olive cultivars and propagation |year=1994 |publisher=University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources |location=Oakland, CA |isbn=1879906155 |oclc=30312488 |page=25}}
Uses
Mission olives are one of five cultivars (along with Ascolano, Barouni, Manzanilla, and Sevillana) commercially viable in California for production as table olives.{{cite book |last=Sutter |first=Ellen G. |editor1-first=Louise |editor1-last=Ferguson |editor2-first=G. Steven |editor2-last=Sibbett |editor3-first=George C. |editor3-last=Martin |title=Olive Production Manual |chapter=Olive cultivars and propagation |year=1994 |publisher=University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources |location=Oakland, CA |isbn=1879906155 |oclc=30312488 |page=23}} They have also been used in the production of olive oil since the days of the Spanish missions.{{cite book |last=Connell |first=Joseph H. |authorlink=Joseph H. Connell |editor1-first=Louise |editor1-last=Ferguson |editor2-first=G. Steven |editor2-last=Sibbett |editor3-first=George C. |editor3-last=Martin |title=Olive Production Manual |chapter=History and scope of the olive industry |year=1994 |publisher=University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources |location=Oakland, CA |isbn=1879906155 |oclc=30312488 |page=3}}
Prevalence
In 1992, the Mission cultivar represented just over eight percent of California's overall olive acreage.{{cite book |last=Connell |first=Joseph H. |authorlink=Joseph H. Connell |editor1-first=Louise |editor1-last=Ferguson |editor2-first=G. Steven |editor2-last=Sibbett |editor3-first=George C. |editor3-last=Martin |title=Olive Production Manual |chapter=History and scope of the olive industry |year=1994 |publisher=University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources |location=Oakland, CA |isbn=1879906155 |oclc=30312488 |page=7}} Mission olives were dominant until 1875, when Andalusian immigrants introduced the Manzanilla cultivar; subsequent introductions further reduced the percentage of Mission trees in California.{{cite book |last=Rosenblum |first=Mort |authorlink=Mort Rosenblum |title=Olives: The Life and Lore of a Noble Fruit |year=1996 |publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux |location=New York |isbn=0865475032 |oclc=34782656 |page=289}} After Manzanilla and Sevillana, however, it remains one of the more common cultivars in the state.{{cite book |last=Taylor |first=Judith M. |title=The Olive in California: History of an Immigrant Tree |year=2000 |publisher=Ten Speed Press |location=Berkeley, CA |isbn=1580081312 |oclc=42619726 |page=[https://archive.org/details/oliveincaliforni00tayl/page/104 104] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/oliveincaliforni00tayl/page/104 }} The Oroville district in Butte County is a major Mission producer.{{cite book |last=Connell |first=Joseph H. |authorlink=Joseph H. Connell |editor1-first=Louise |editor1-last=Ferguson |editor2-first=G. Steven |editor2-last=Sibbett |editor3-first=George C. |editor3-last=Martin |title=Olive Production Manual |chapter=History and scope of the olive industry |year=1994 |publisher=University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources |location=Oakland, CA |isbn=1879906155 |oclc=30312488 |page=6}}
Origin
Olive trees were first brought to California by the Franciscan mission of San Diego de Alcalá; olive production likely began in earnest within the first two decades of the mission. The original trees suffered after the secularization of the missions, though pioneers cultivated new trees from their cuttings, leading to the distinct Mission cultivar.
Though researchers at the University of Córdoba presumed the Mission olive to be of Spanish origin, they were unable to establish its relationship with any of 700 Spanish cultivars. Recent DNA testing in California suggests the Mission olive could be related to Picholine Marocaine, a Moroccan cultivar. Spanish settlers likely brought what would become the Mission trees to Mexico first.{{cite book |last=Taylor |first=Judith M. |title=The Olive in California: History of an Immigrant Tree |year=2000 |publisher=Ten Speed Press |location=Berkeley, CA |isbn=1580081312 |oclc=42619726 |page=[https://archive.org/details/oliveincaliforni00tayl/page/11 11] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/oliveincaliforni00tayl/page/11 }}
See also
References
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{{olives}}