I can't swear to it but I believe that Kalamata are notoriously difficult to grow from cuttings. They do best as grafts. But it's certainly worth taking 20 or so cuttings and giving it a go. You've got nothing to lose.
Have a look at the info in the link below. It's written for the northern hemisphere.

Here is a link that might be useful: Olives

I agree with Ray they are difficult, but not impossible. I got one cutting to grow from 6. Take quite a number of cuttings and see how you go...good luck

Thanks ray and helen. I think I'll have a go at the 'rooted truncheon' method as shown in yr link ray. All the others sound far too scary for me. And I'm depending on a bit of beginners luck. I think I'll keep the experiment up in Sydney where its warmer until I think they can make a go of it down South. Any idea what sort of soil mix I shd use? And wd you cover with plastic to give a greenhouse effect?
Thanks so much
louise

Helen
What variety olive and time of the year did you do it. I did about 30 in January and none took. All were well watered and in the shade. I was told January was the time but for me it was no good. They came from a tree which was in it's growth stage. I was told it's the best time.

Any tips?

I would just use any good seed raising/cutting mix, but not a potting mix as they contain fertilisers. I think I would definitely go for the plastic cover/greenhouse effect as semi-hardwood cuttings like to be kept moist. Kept out of direct sun but in a well lit place should prevent them from overheating. If they start to sweat too much, prick a few holes in the plastic, otherwise you run the risk of encouraging fungal diseases.
Good luck with them and please let us know how it turns out.
BTW, your project sounds very exciting; Keep us posted on that too from time to time. Would love to hear how the regeneration goes. Have you heard of the keyline dam system? Might be worth considering in a drought prone area.

Here is a link that might be useful: Keyline concepts

That's a great site Ray.
Louise I'll be really interested to hear how you go, I'm hoping to start some trees from cuttings in the spring. I've got access to lots of trees (no Kalamatas though) so I'm hoping that I'll get some success just through weight of numbers!
As far as propagation mix is concerned, make sure it is free draining, maybe mix some sand with it. I'm not sure I agree with Ray about the fertiliser though, the cuttings will be in the mix for a while so it may be needed. Perhaps others might have an aopinion.
Good luck & make sure you let us know how you go!
Sarah

pepino

I got the kalamata cuttings in the middle of winter. steve turned up with them and I planted them...Actually I had two cuttings that took, but I got ill and they didnt get watered and one died. The other cuttings I have at the moment I took in January...They are in a mini green house and seem ok, so far

I check out that site and it answers all my questions. Thanks.

Sarah, I believe the reason for not wanting fert in the mix is to encourage a larger root system. Once clearly established, you can always add liquid fert, but that shouldn't be necessary untill just before spring growth starts.

I may be wrong. I frequently am.

Since this message was posted I've looked at lots of sites on propagating olives & there seems to be a lot of conflicting advice. The only consistency seems to be that Kalamatas are hard to strike & for that reason are often grafted.
One good site I found recommended taking semi hardwood cuttings in summer & using a rooting hormone to get reasonable results. Well it's not really summer anymore but I think I'll take a few cuttings off my (very small) Kalamata & give it a go.
I shall be up at the farm again next month to help with the picking & am planning to bring back a whole heap of cuttings to try.

Hi there, knowing several people in the Heathcote (Victoria) area who grow olives commercialy, I have been told that unlike other varieties of olives which can grow and produce olives successfully from cuttings, Kalamata will strike from cuttings easy enough, but will not grow and develop an adequate root system resulting in problems years down the track. You will find that nurseries stocking olives trees will often have both grafted and non-grafted olive trees of the same variety, but not when it comes to Kalamata.

I would like to know, seven years after the original poster started this thread, how his cuttings did?

About 3 years ago, I took some suckers from olive trees on a local golf course, stripped them of all but one leaf, stuck them in the ground, and today the two that lived are taller than me! I have no idea what variety they are, but their olives (from the golf course) brined up well and tasted great!

We are moving to acreage soon in a Mediterranean climate, so I'm going to take cuttings next week from these trees (before I dig them up for their trip), strip all leaves but one, and this time just put them in perlite and sand in a well drained pot, then in a bag with a twist tie, and let them rest in the shade for a couple months. I hope some will take root because I'd really like a small olive orchard.

Suzi

ahmadsalem, we transplanted both of our trees that were started from cuttings to our new property. They flank a path that leads through the property. We named the path Olive Lane. The first year they lost most of their leaves and looked like they weren't going to make it, but last year they got new leaves and started looking healthy. This spring there are tons of new branches and they are vigorously growing. No olives yet. Maybe next year. This is Southern California and there are many established olive trees around, so plenty pollinators. I wonder how long from cutting to fruit and I may never know the variety. The trees from which I got the cuttings bore HUGE olives. Delicious picked green, brined with garlic and herbs.

hi Suzi,olive trees are very hardy and can tolerate below freezing temperatures.flowering and fruiting will take place on last season's growth,so i think they will flower a lot this year.cuttings will take 3 years to start fruiting as to my experience.cuttings taken from the base of the tree will take longer time but will have an erect growth.as for the size of the fruit i personally prefer the medium size as they are much richer in flavor than the large size variety which we pickle only when ripe and black.if you need to know the best way to pickle olives or have any questions let me know.

I'll be sure to let our "resident pruner," AKA hubby know not to prune this year so at least we get some fruit. We do plan to keep these trees to a reachable height, and we will remove the suckers. I may stick some in cracks in granite boulders prior to rainy season just to see if they will root and grow. How is pickling different than brining? We just soaked ours in very salty (enough to float an egg) water in a dark place in a covered container. We changed the brine often. I think it took a couple months to get decent tasting olives, and then we put them in sterilized mason jars with peppercorns, citrus slices, garlic slices and various herbs. I know somewhere in that time the recipe called for red wine vinegar. I found it on the web, and will look for it again when it's time to process the fruit. If you know of a good one, please put the link here. Thanks!

Hello there. Just in case you are interested, I have just started a project trying to grow some olive tree cuttings from several trees in Portugal in our home on London! The guy at the garden centre was pretty pessimistic but this has personal meaning for me feeling a bit misplaced outside the Mediterranean myself so I really hope they grow roots!!! I cut them Saturday, planted them Sunday and today put them in a mini greenhouse. I wonder if its best to keep this inside behind the south facing balcony door or outside,where its pretty cold? Its about 23 Celsius inside and about 15 outside? Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Hi amvn.i will say you have nice warm temperature inside your green house 23 is great if you nave intermittent mist systemic not you better have them under shade for two weeks