Just my two cents but that really looks like an ant harvesting nectar from a scale insect by stroking it with its antennae. I've never seen scale that look like that before but I have seen scale that are pretty much sedentary and do not move around on the stem. Scale bugs are such a bizarre group of insects that there is no way to categorize them easily. I will check my olives to see if any black scale are on them. My European Olives are not liking the high heat and humidity so they would be prime candidates for an infestation. My black olive 'Arbequinea' is thriving. If anyone is looking to grow olives in a pot as a patio edible I highly recommend them. I treat mine just like a citrus tree. They do need to experience some cold in order to bloom but they don't like deep freezes or extended periods of sub freezing temps.

I saw olive trees for sale in Madisin GA last week.

It's been over 6 months since our last deep freeze, so I thought it was about time to give an up-date. All of the Olive Trees showed signs of freeze damage. Many of the leaves and smaller branches turned brown and eventually died. I would estimate that about 1/3 of the outer foliage had some sort of damage. I waited until May before removing any of the burnt looking foliage whatsoever. It's now the middle of August and the trees look green and healthy. The Oleanders and Changsha Orange didn't make it. However, I am happy to report, after turning all brown and looking quite dead, the Climbing Figs made a 100% recovery. In fact, they look better than they have in years (probably due to all the new growth). Looking around the neighborhood, it appears that most gardens suffered similar damage as mine. One can still see some dead limbs and leaf burn which hasn't yet been removed. A few homes lost some marginal hardy plants/trees like Eucalyptus and Sago Palms. But overall, it's now hard to tell that we ever experienced such cold weather. I am now back in Ireland, completing the end of a two-year assignment. If our Olive Trees make it through this winter, I plan to attach photos so everyone can see.

I am having a difficult time trying to find out how to cloud prune an olive tree. Does anyone know where I can start or find additional information? I have found a few articles on pines...but not Olive trees. I have seen quite a few that have been done nicely and would like to do the same with mine. Thank you