{"id":3330,"date":"2020-09-22T07:03:27","date_gmt":"2020-09-22T07:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/?p=3330"},"modified":"2020-09-27T11:14:42","modified_gmt":"2020-09-27T11:14:42","slug":"the-last-surviving-olive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/en\/weather-climate\/the-last-surviving-olive\/","title":{"rendered":"The last surviving olive"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Olive trees and climate change in Israel\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0vzqV35er5Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>It is hard to imagine the Israeli landscape without olive trees. It is hard to imagine the Israeli landscape without olive trees. In fact, Israel, including the rest of the Levant, is the region where olive trees were first domesticated 7000 years ago. Local olives are well adapted to the climatic conditions of the Mediterranean Basin. However, an increase in droughts in the region accelerated by the climate crisis has begun to take its toll on one of the most popular Israeli staple crops. Different types of olives vary as to how they are affected by water shortage. A new Israeli study that is expected to be published soon examines why this phenomenon occurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Olive\ntrees are very resistant to drought conditions,&#8221; says Dr. Uri Hochberg of\nthe Institute of Soil, Water and Environmental Sciences at the Agricultural\nResearch Organization, Volcani Center, a co-author of the study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;According to what we measured in olives grown at the Volcani Center, they are able to absorb water from the ground even at the tremendous pressure of 80 atmospheres (a unit of pressure).&#8221; Such strength is equivalent to pumping water to a height of 800 meters and allows the trees to draw water from even the driest of soils. &#8220;By comparison, vegetables reach a pressure of only 10 atmospheres, while fruit trees pull water from the ground with no more than 30-40 atmospheres,&#8221; says Hochberg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"711\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/134089019_fe24340e18_o-1024x711.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3339\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/134089019_fe24340e18_o-1024x711.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/134089019_fe24340e18_o-300x208.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/134089019_fe24340e18_o-768x534.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/134089019_fe24340e18_o-1536x1067.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/134089019_fe24340e18_o-2048x1423.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>It is hard to imagine the Israeli landscape without olive trees. Photo by chany crystal on Flickr.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>The\nsensitive olive and the indifferent olive<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The new\nstudy, led by student Oded Barzilai, examined two common olive varieties: The\nSyrian olive and the Barnea olive. The Syrian olive, which is the most common\nolive in Israel, is a traditional variety that has been grown in the region for\nmany generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Syrian\nolive tree is usually grown in plantations (i.e., its only source of water is\nrainwater). Its fruits produce high-quality oil but are also processed as table\nolives intended to be consumed as food. Barnea is a modern variety developed in\nthe 1970s at the Volcani Center, and is an irrigated crop (i.e., it regularly\nreceives water), and is used exclusively for oil production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1007\/s00271-010-0237-1\">Previous studies<\/a> have found that the two varieties\nrespond differently to irrigation: The Barnea blooms and thrives when\nwell-watered, but does not grow when receiving too little water. The Syrian\nolive is relatively &#8220;indifferent&#8221; to irrigation, and functions to a\nsimilar extent, whether it is irrigated or not \u2013 hence it is also less affected\nby water shortage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The objective of the new study was to examine the causes and implications of different properties of those two varieties. &#8220;We wanted to see what the Syrian is paying for being more resistant to water stress,&#8221; Hochberg says. &#8220;Nature is composed of systems of interactions, and when you gain something, you usually lose something.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/8157001201_02924e4967_o-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3343\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/8157001201_02924e4967_o-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/8157001201_02924e4967_o-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/8157001201_02924e4967_o-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/8157001201_02924e4967_o-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/8157001201_02924e4967_o-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>The new study examined two common olive varieties: The Syrian olive and the Barnea olive. Photo by StateofIsrael on Flickr<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Small,\nbut economical<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nresearchers found that, like humans, the different olive varieties differ in\n&#8220;character.&#8221; The Syrian is a frugal and solid variety, which absorbs\nless water from the soil, even when there is plenty to go around. This is also\nreflected in the extent to which the Syrian olive opens its stomata, which are\ntiny pores on the leaf surface responsible for gas exchange, such as carbon\ndioxide. The plant uses carbon dioxide during photosynthesis and is, therefore,\nessential for the plant&#8217;s growth and survival. However, the side effect of this\ngas exchange is the exposure of the inside of the leaf, in which the percentage\nof moisture is high, to the drier external environment, causing water loss to\nthe atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Syrian\nvariety opens its stomata less than the Barnea, and therefore loses less water\n&#8211; but at the same time, the tree is smaller and bears fewer fruits. According\nto Hochberg, such a mechanism for coping with stress or strain is well known,\neven outside the plant world. &#8220;This can also be observed in people who,\nfor instance, had to deal with a lot of stress or traumatic conditions as\nchildren, and as a result, remained physically small,&#8221; he says. &#8220;You\ncan see it in our grandparents&#8217; generation, for example.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Barnea, on\nthe other hand, is more &#8220;wasteful.&#8221; It draws greater amounts of water\nfrom the soil and opens its stomata more than the Syrian variety. Therefore, it\ncan grow bigger and bear more fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also, according to the study, the xylem (the tissue that transports water through a plant) of the Barnea is larger and can hold more water. However, during times of hardship, the Barnea&#8217;s xylem has difficulties supplying the entire tree with enough water. As a result, the Barnea suffers more in dry conditions and loses crops on a larger scale than the Syrian olive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/4429428286_4da1ac5e76_o-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3347\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/4429428286_4da1ac5e76_o-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/4429428286_4da1ac5e76_o-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/4429428286_4da1ac5e76_o-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/4429428286_4da1ac5e76_o-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/4429428286_4da1ac5e76_o-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>The researchers found that, like humans, the different olive varieties differ in &#8220;character.&#8221; Photo by zeevveez.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Preserving\nlocal varieties <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With the\nintensification of the climate crisis in recent years, olive trees have to deal\nwith water shortages more frequently. &#8220;Declining water availability, and\nthe fact that rainfall events are becoming increasingly scarce, are greatly\naffecting the olives,&#8221; says Dr. Arnon Dag of the Gilat Research Center at\nthe Volcani Center, a co-author of the study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According\nto Dag, Israeli olive plantations, which spread across no less than 250,000\ndunams (roughly 62.000 acres) of land and constitute the primary method of\ngrowing olives in Israel, are greatly affected by that problem. &#8220;In recent\nyears, we&#8217;ve seen very severe damage to the olive plantations in the Galilee\nregion in the north of the country, where most of the countries olives trees\nare grown,&#8221; he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In order to\nminimize the damage caused by water shortages in olive plantations, farmers\ncan, for instance, perform intensive pruning. Another way is to simply grow\ndifferent olive varieties. &#8220;It is entirely possible, in local olive\nplantations, to place a stronger emphasis on varieties that are more resistant\nto drought,&#8221; says Dag. &#8220;The Syrian is the main variety in Israel, and\nit will probably become more and more established.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Dag, the study illustrates the importance of preserving local olive varieties, such as the Syrian olive, grown and refined in the region for thousands of years. &#8220;There is now a massive loss of ancient olive populations in Israel due to urbanization, fires in areas that are not properly cultivated, and uprooting of plantations in order to shift to other crops,&#8221; he says. &#8220;In the 1930s, we grew 30 local varieties here in Israel. Today, it&#8217;s only two or three. Olives are part of our culture and heritage, and it is important to preserve local varieties so that they will be here for decades to come,&#8221; he concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This ZAVIT article was also published in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ynetnews.com\/environment\/article\/rJOLZEUSw\">Ynetnews<\/a>&nbsp;on 09\/21\/2020.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It is hard to imagine the Israeli landscape without olive trees. It is hard to imagine the Israeli landscape without &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":3335,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,8],"tags":[],"acf":[],"post-meta-fields":{"_edit_lock":["1601205407:11"],"_oembed_f6a93c039054b40e19af0490ea4f3efd":["<iframe title=\"Olive trees and climate change in Israel\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0vzqV35er5Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>"],"_oembed_time_f6a93c039054b40e19af0490ea4f3efd":["1600758207"],"_edit_last":["11"],"subtitle":["In a new study, Israeli scientists examined how local olive trees cope with dwindling water supplies caused by an intensifying climate crisis"],"_subtitle":["field_59d3d36ea7fe1"],"_wpml_media_duplicate":["1"],"_wpml_media_featured":["1"],"_thumbnail_id":["3335"]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3330"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3330"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3330\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3373,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3330\/revisions\/3373"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3330"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3330"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3330"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}