I incorrectly stated in my last post my olive trees were planted in Oct 2006. Actually it was Oct 2007. I need to see if I can get any more info from MSU who did the soil test about whether I apply all the ag lime at the same time or not. Gonebananas is right about the limestone gravel dissolving slowly (a large pile has been in my driveway for several years) and it sounds like the ag lime idea if done correctly should eventually get the surrounding soil to the correct PH. If I used the limestone gravel and spread it around the trees it would interfere with any mulch addition so its probably not a good idea. The idea for the azomite came from the website of Santa Cruz olive tree nursery where I bought the trees but I suppose that is less important than the soil PH. They soil here is more clay than sand and doesn't drain as well as it should, another potential problem. Thats why I added compost to an oversize hole when I planted the trees. I was going to add sand but several people told me that would make the soil harder, not softer. MSU and no one else I've found around here is familiar with olives, as they are not being grown by anyone else in Mississippi to my knowledge. Closest place near Austin, Texas. Most people told me that I shouldn't try them in zone 7 and a grower I talked to over the phone advised me to only plant the Mission variety due to the cold temperatures here. A professor at MSU told me that they would start an olive trial next year after I called and told them I have 21 growing here. I'll probably add another 20 next fall. Softmentor, what kind of mulching would you suggest. Right now I have applied pine needles around the trees to keep competition away. What about spreading more compost around each tree over a larger area (10'x10' per tree). I'm not as knowledgeable about gardening as many on this forum, as I've generally planted trees (pines,oaks,etc.) and just left them alone. Thanks for everyone's advice, as I've gotten most of the information on planting here rather than from the sellers or local sources.

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 neglected to emphasize that the olive trees are in clay pots and come inside during the winter. They cannot survive below 25F no matter what, and through trial and error, I've learned that fact. Even if they survive, when the sap rises, the stems all split and the plant will die, just like my big bay laurel that was in the ground this past winter, and the mission figs (but the Celeste fig had no damage at all.) Last year i didn't take the olive trees out soon enough and the flowers arrived while inside and quickly got burned up by too much heat. This past year, the trees came inside in late November and went out in late February. It was a cold spring, but not below 25F after i took the trees outside (but I was closely watching the weather station.) The budding started very late this year - about three weeks ago. Most years, the buds appeared in March or April. This year, very late. I was told that someone else had trees in the ground in St. Michaels for the last ten years, and those had survived many winters. But not 2013/2014 - this was the lowest temp since 2002 for me. About 5F, and in 2002, it was -5F. Again - 25F is the lower limit that I have been able to count on.

So i assume that this 'invasion' is temporary then?. I've searched the trees thoroughly but couldn't find any caterpillars so they must have moved on. Funny thing is that last month i removed about a dozen of praying mantises from my garden because they freak me out... huge mistake it seems. :) Thanks for the help rhizo.