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Its manageable size also makes the olive plant a perfect choice for a small garden, an easy-to-maintain sloping garden or a roof terrace – where it will add a Mediterranean holiday feel to your everyday life!
Olive tree pruning – tips and instructions
A little olive tree adds a touch of Mediterranean flair to your garden. We explain how you can get it in shape.
05.03.2025
Overview: Pruning an olive tree
It is best to prune olive trees in spring or autumn
Outside regions with very mild winters, olive trees are always grown in pots
A clean, sharp tool prevents diseases and fungal infection
Topiary pruning ensures a dense, round crown – but is optional
Clean, sharp secateurs are the right choice for pruning an olive tree. A saw is less suitable because of the wounds it will leave on the tree.
You can prune your olive tree in autumn, for example, ahead of the winter months. It is also possible to prune earlier in the year, as long as temperatures are not too high.
You can get the secateurs out every year or two if you want a beautifully shaped olive tree.
However, it is actually not necessary to prune olive trees at all. Our expert assures us that pruning is optional.
No, not really. Whether you’re pruning an olive tree in a pot or in the ground makes no real difference to the pruning technique.
However, olive trees are not really winter-hardy and so should always be grown in pots in our latitudes.
A healthy olive tree should not be cut back hard, because in our climate, olive trees need a lot of time to regrow and fill the gaps made by pruning.
You can make an olive tree bushy by using secateurs to carefully trim any protruding shoots and keep the olive tree in a compact shape.
Many people wonder if it is necessary to prune olive trees. According to our expert, from a tree care perspective there is not necessarily any need to prune a pot-grown olive tree.
However, if you particularly appreciate a beautiful, evenly growingshape for a harmonious garden design, or if you want to trim your olive tree to make the trunk thicker, you can prune your olive tree.
It is also possible to cut the tree back if it has grown too big.
Pruning an olive tree – when is best?
The evergreen olive tree (Olea europaea) belongs to the olive tree family and originates from the Mediterranean. In Germany it is also popular as a potted ornamental plant and with its silvery green leaves, it adorns many small gardens and Mediterranean front gardens.
It is best to prune your olive tree in autumn before winter begins, or in spring after overwintering is finished in February. You can also choose to prune the olive tree at other times of year– the main thing is that conditions are neither too hot nor frosty. Find out more about when to prune your fruit trees here.
Pot or garden: What are the differences?
An olive tree decorates a terrace.
Because olive trees would not survive an entire winter outdoors in our latitude, it is better to grow them in pots here. While mature, outdoor olive trees in the Mediterranean can reach a height of up to 20 metres, olive trees in pots only grow to around 1.5 to 2.0 metres tall – which obviously means pruning is considerably easier for you if your olive tree is in a container.
For pruning a small potted olive tree, there is of course no need for certain preparations and safety measures, such as using a telescopic tool or a ladder.
Pruning olive trees: The right tools and accessories
It is best to have the appropriate tools and protective equipment ready and at hand for pruning your olive tree. For reliable and precise cutting, you should always choose quality tools.
To prune an olive tree in a pot, it is best to use sharp, high-quality secateurs, such as a STIHL PG 10 Bypass. Smooth cut surfaces heal more quickly, while unclean cuts increase the risk of fungal infection and plant diseases.
For free-growing olive trees in Mediterranean zones you will need a stronger tool, such as a STIHL GTA 26 battery-powered garden pruner. If you are radically cutting back an olive tree, you may even need a chainsaw.
Before cutting your olive tree, you should carefullyclean and disinfect your cutting tool. This keeps it sharp and functional for longer – and means you are creating optimal conditions for a clean cutting result.
Working with high-performance power tools is fun and allows you to broaden your skills, which is great if you can rely on effective and safe protective clothing.
Always wear your personal protective equipment when working with STIHL power tools. Find out more in the owners manuals for your product. Before using your power tool for the first time, fully familiarise yourself with it and ensure that it is in flawless condition before each use.
On request, your STIHL dealer will be happy to prepare your power tool for its first job, and will also advise you on models and sizes of protective clothing that you can try on at your leisure. Please remember that personal protective equipment is no substitute for safe working.
This means that olive tree pruning is quick and precise:
Pruning olive trees: Topiary pruning
If you want to a well-shaped, densely growing tree, you should carry out topiary pruning on your olive tree. To shape a potted olive tree, use secateurs and cut back all of the current year’s growth by half.
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Always make cuts above a pair of leaves and also significantly shorten and drooping branches. You should also cut dried-out branches from the olive tree. Finally, take a few steps back and thoroughly check whether the crown is cut into a nicely round shape, or if individual branches are still protruding and need further work.
Appropriate pruning supports the olive harvest.
Fruit wood pruning: For a bountiful olive harvest
When pruning fruit trees, the aim is to ensure the best possible yield. Olive trees in our latitude are purely ornamental, so there is no need to consider fruit yield when you prune the olive tree, unlike in regions with mild winters. Fruit wood pruning is not relevant in this case. As such the following steps refer to larger olive trees growing in Mediterranean regions.
Pruning for development: Pruning a newly planted tree
The basic aim of development pruning is to make a crown that is as flat-toppedand open as possible. If you prune the olive tree correctly into this shape, enough light and air will be able to reach the fruits.
To achieve this, select about five side branches which are growing as horizontally as possible, and shorten them by about half, as well as cutting the top of the main stem. Remove any shoots that are growing up vertically, known as water shoots, when you are pruning an olive tree for development.
Maintenance cut: Pruning an established olive tree into shape
Once your olive tree is established, you only need to prune it every two years in spring. Thin out the shoots and prune the tips of the main and side branches. At this stage, the goal of pruning the olive tree is to form new side branches which will, ideally, bear many olives.
Rejuvenating cut: Pruning an old olive tree
Radically cutting back a healthy olive tree is not recommended in our latitudes. Although olives tolerate pruning, they also take a lot of time to regrow.
Nonetheless, in the Mediterranean region old olive trees that are barely producing any fruit are sometimes heavily pruned for rejuvenation. This means the main branches are sawn back around 0.5-1 metres above the trunk, in order to encourage vigorous new growth.
We hope that we have given you some useful tips for your olive tree. Happy pruning!
