An Olive Oil tale.
What does working by the seasons mean?
In an increasingly frenetic and stressful world, I believe it remains a unique and almost meditative experience to observe how certain traditional activities still faithfully follow the natural rhythms of the seasons. To explore this idea more deeply, I decided to follow in my father's footsteps, immersing myself in the process as he meticulously produced olive oil from some of the cherished plots of land that our family has owned for generations in southern Italy.
Olive oil production has been deeply rooted in the rich culture and traditions of Mediterranean peoples for thousands of years, forming an essential part of their daily lives. Even today, olive oil remains a fundamental mainstay of Italian, Greek, Spanish, and North African cuisines, cherished for its flavor and health benefits. And everything begins with a humble little olive… but before reaching your table, there are many meticulous steps and careful processes to follow, based on the seasons.
SPRING
"Spring is when life's alive in everything." Christina Rossetti
Spring is the season of rebirth, a time when nature restarts its cycle and the fields become vibrant, colorful, and full of life. It is also the crucial period when fresh oxygen and water need to penetrate the soil deeply to nourish the plants.
During this time, plowing becomes an essential first step in the process that ultimately leads to the production of high-quality olive oil.
In preparation for the summer heat, it is also crucial to install and properly set up water pipes in the field to ensure that the trees receive adequate hydration and will not suffer damage in the event of a prolonged drought.
It’s a tedious job, where hundreds of meters of pipes need to be installed manually, but it’s of strategic importance for the plants and future harvest.
SUMMER
“A little bit of summer is what the whole year is all about.”
John Mayer
Summer is usually the season of rest and vacation for most people, a time to relax and unwind. However, the field always demands attention, care, and maintenance, beginning with something as simple yet important as a haircut.
Pruning Olive trees are essential for ensuring productivity, health, and controlled growth. Pruning promotes air circulation and sunlight, stimulates the growth of new branches, facilitates harvesting, and maintains the tree's shape while also preventing disease.
Another lengthy and challenging activity, where ladders and pneumatic scissors play a crucial role in the process. Each tree requires careful attention and precise handling, and to avoid the intense midday heat, this work is ideally carried out early in the morning.
AUTUMN
The wind gradually became colder, the sky increasingly cloudier, and with the arrival of the new season came a fresh set of tasks and challenges for the farmers to face...
“Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall” F. Scott Fitzgerald
This is the busiest season of the entire year, as the harvest is just around the corner, and everything must be perfectly prepared and in place to ensure a successful collection.
In October it is time for fertilization, with an organic mixture of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium fertilizer.
After months of dedicated and careful hard work, the olives have finally ripened and are now ready, signaling that it’s the perfect time to begin the harvest…
From simple scissors to advanced pneumatic shakers, essential tools designed to gently shake the branches and allow the olives to fall onto large nets carefully placed right beneath each tree. This process is long and labor-intensive but incredibly rewarding, bringing us one step closer to producing a truly genuine and high-quality Olive Oil.
After carefully picking up all the olives from the trees, it is now time to bring them to the oil mill, where they will be expertly transformed into high-quality organic olive oil.
The steps involved are multiple and the processes are all entirely mechanical, beginning with the washing and pressing of the olives, followed by kneading and extraction, and finally the crucial separation phase, where centrifugation is used to effectively separate the olive oil from the water by means of centrifugal force.
And finally, after many months of dedicated work and countless sacrifices, the final product is now truly ready to shine…
This project is sincerely dedicated to my father Francesco, who taught me the true pleasure of patience and the important lesson that good things come as the result of hard work, dedication, and genuine passion.