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Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change

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A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Horticultural and Floricultural Crops".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2021) | Viewed by 42307

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Dr. Helder Fraga

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Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences (CITAB), Institute for Innovation, Capacity Building and Sustainability of Agri-Food Production (Ino4Agro), Universidade of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Interests: applied climatology; mediterranean crops; climate change; crop modelling; data science
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Dear Colleagues,

The olive tree is one of the most important oil-producing crops in the Mediterranean basin. The significance of this crop and of the olive oil socio-economic sector is largely acknowledged for many countries in this part of the globe. Atmospheric conditions play a key role in the establishment and sustainability of olive trees. In fact, the specific climatic conditions of the Mediterranean basin make this region particularly suitable for this crop. This explains why Mediterranean countries produce 95% of the global olive oil supply. Considering the strong influence of climatic and weather factors on olive tree yields and olive oil quality, climate change may indeed pose a significant threat. For this basin, recent-past trends already point to a noticeable increase in the growing season temperatures, as well as changes in the rainfall regimes. Moreover, several climate scenarios give evidence of enhanced stress conditions for olive growth until the end of the century. Although olive trees have a high adaptability to adverse atmospheric conditions, the amounting climate change evidence suggests that adaptation and mitigation measures should to be taken by stakeholders.

The current Special Issue of Agronomy welcomes articles related to the field of climate and climate change impacts on olive trees and olive oil production, including the assessment of potential adaptation measures against these threats. Field trials and/or modelling approaches (crop or climate modelling) are also valuable contributions to this Special Issue.

Dr. Helder Fraga
Guest Editor

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Keywords

olive trees
olive oil
climate modelling
crop modelling
adaptation measures

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 4946 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Future Scenarios for Olive Tree and Grapevine Potential Yields in the World Heritage Côa Region, Portugal

by Helder Fraga, Nathalie Guimarães, Teresa R. Freitas, Aureliano C. Malheiro and João A. Santos

Agronomy 2022, 12(2), 350; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12020350 - 29 Jan 2022

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3827

Abstract

In the World Heritage Côa region, in northern Portugal, agriculture has crucial economic, social and cultural importance. Vineyards and olive groves are part of the economic base of this region, contributing to the regional commercial budget and the livelihood of its residents. Climate change is expected to have significant impacts on these crops, where climatic conditions are already very warm and dry, posing a key threat to the olive oil and winemaking sectors. The present study analyzes the impact of climate change on the potential yield of these two crops over the Côa region. For this purpose, two crop models were initialized and ran with state-of-the art spatial datasets for climate, soil, terrain, and plant data. As outputs of the crop models, potential yields of grapevines and olive trees were obtained for the recent-past (1981–2005) and for the future (2041–2070), under two climatic scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5). Results (potential yield) were then normalized, taking into account the recent-past maximum yields and divided into four classes (low, low-moderate, moderate-high, and high). For the recent-past, the results of the crop models present a high agreement with the current location of vineyards and olive groves. For the future, two different types of impacts (positive and negative) are found for the two crops. For olive trees, the results show promising future improvements in possible expansion areas within the Côa region. However, for grapevines, the results show a decrease in potential yields throughout the region, including a strong shift of producing moderate zones to low potentials. Nonetheless, these results also suggest that the negative impacts of climate change can be alleviated by the application of suitable adaptation measures, based on changing certain management practices, even in the more severe future scenario. Therefore, these measures should be carefully planned and implemented in a timely fashion by farmers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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17 pages, 2068 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Olive Maturity and Season on the Quality of Virgin Olive Oils from the Area Assigned to the Protected Designation of Origin of “Aceite de la Alcarria” (Spain)

by José E. Pardo, Adrián Rabadán, Mariano Suárez, Jacinto Tello, Diego C. Zied and Manuel Álvarez-Ortí

Agronomy 2021, 11(7), 1439; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11071439 - 20 Jul 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2857

Abstract

This work aimed to assess the influence of olive maturity and oil season on the potential quality of monovarietal virgin olive oils from the area assigned to the Protected Designation of Origin of “Aceite de la Alcarria” (Spain), analysing the regulated physicochemical quality and sensory parameters, the stability parameters and composition of fatty acids, sterols and triterpenic dialcohols. To complete the study, we also characterised the coupage olive oils made in the oil mills located in the PDO area (real quality). The main variety grown in La Alcarria is Castellana, whose oils are characterised by a high content of palmitic acid (14.27% with olives in veraison, 13.81% with ripe olives), a low content of linoleic acid (5.03% with olives in veraison, 5.98% with ripe olives) and a total phenol content higher than the rest of varieties grown in the area (between 350 and 500 mg of caffeic acid/kg depending on the season considered), which is reflected in higher oxidative stability values (induction time of 50.65 h at 100 °C). In addition, they have a sterol content below that established by the regulations (<1000 mg/kg). The olive oils produced using olives in veraison presented a lower level of acidity and peroxide index, more intense fruitiness, an absence of defects in all the samples and higher oxidative stability, compared to those produced using ripe olives, and thus early harvest of the olives is recommended. It was also found that the season affects the physicochemical composition of the oils, although these changes tend to be of little significance, with the characteristics of the variety being maintained, regardless of the harvesting season analysed. The coupage virgin olive oils produced in the mills registered under the PDO of Aceite de la Alcarria, representative of their real quality, showed, as expected, similar values to those observed in the monovarietal virgin olive oils produced using the Castellana variety, which is clearly predominant in the study area. The characterization of oils from local varieties allows one to obtain a greater variability in terms of the sensory notes of extra virgin olive oil. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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16 pages, 2837 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Olive Oils from Fruits Infected with Different Anthracnose Pathogens Show Sensory Defects Earlier Than Chemical Degradation

by Fátima Peres, Pedro Talhinhas, Hugo Afonso, Helena Alegre, Helena Oliveira and Suzana Ferreira-Dias

Agronomy 2021, 11(6), 1041; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11061041 - 22 May 2021

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 2697

Abstract

Anthracnose is the most important disease of olives responsible for olive oil depreciation. The aim of this study is to compare the negative effects of the most common olive anthracnose pathogens in Portugal, Colletotrichum nymphaeae, C. godetiae, or C. acutatum, on oil extracted from fruits of the most cultivated Portuguese olive cultivars, ‘Galega Vulgar’ and ‘Cobrançosa’. Healthy fruits (ripening index 3.5) were inoculated, incubated, and sampled over 14 days post-inoculation (d.p.i.) for symptom assessment and oil extraction. Virgin olive oil (VOO) was characterised by quality criteria parameters (acidity, peroxide value, UV absorbances, organoleptic assessment, fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE)), total phenols (TPH), main fatty acids, and waxes compositions. Galega Vulgar fruits were more susceptible to anthracnose than Cobrançosa fruits. Colletotrichum nymphaeae was equally highly virulent for both cultivars, while C. godetiae was less virulent especially in Cobrançosa. VOO acidity increased reached 5% in Galega oils and 2% in Cobrançosa oils from fruits infected with C. nymphaeae or C. acutatum at 14 d.p.i. FAEE were higher than the legal limit for extra VOO in Galega oils from fruits at 7 d.p.i. with C. nymphaeae or C. acutatum, or 11 d.p.i. with C. godetiae. TPH decreased through the experiments with all the inoculated fungi. The musty sensory defect was detected in Galega and Cobrançosa VOO from fruits inoculated with C. nymphaeae or C. acutatum at 3 or 7 d.p.i. earlier than chemical degradation, respectively. The degradation levels of olive oils depended on the Colletotrichum species and olive cultivar. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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18 pages, 614 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Morphology, Phenology, Yield, and Quality of Durum Wheat Cultivated within Organic Olive Orchards of the Mediterranean Area

by Anna Panozzo, Hsinya Huang, Bruno Bernazeau, Teofilo Vamerali, Marie Françoise Samson and Dominique Desclaux

Agronomy 2020, 10(11), 1789; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10111789 - 15 Nov 2020

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2832

Abstract

In the current context of climate change, tree–crop combinations in agroforestry systems are suggested to mitigate water and heat stresses, particularly in semi-arid environments of the Mediterranean area. In this framework, a 3-year trial was conducted at the French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (INRAE) in Mauguio (Southern France) in order to investigate the response of twenty-five durum wheat genotypes under a yearly pruned (AF) and a never-pruned alley olive orchard (AF+), in comparison with an open field without trees (control, C). The grain yield of wheat was markedly reduced in both the agroforestry systems AF (average −43%) and AF+ (−83%), according to the shading level. Among the yield components, the plant density at harvest was enhanced in AF (+22%) and AF+ (+3%), although with a significant reduction in the number of grains per spike (−37% in AF and −62% in AF+), and the number of spikes per plant (−32% in AF and −52% in AF+). The thousand-grain weight (TGW) and harvest index (HI) were slightly higher under moderate shade (AF; +12% vs. C) and severe shading (AF+; +6%). Plant biomass and spike size were significantly reduced in both agroforestry systems, while the flag leaf–spike distance (last internode) increased in AF. It was concluded that the moderate shading conditions of AF may create a sustainable agricultural system, and the wide intraspecific variability suggested a large scope for screening suitable genotypes, helping to produce ideotypes to implement agroforestry-oriented breeding programs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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11 pages, 1898 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Water Stress Coefficient Ks in Different Olive Orchards

by Efthimios Kokkotos, Anastasios Zotos and Angelos Patakas

Agronomy 2020, 10(10), 1594; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10101594 - 17 Oct 2020

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3167

Abstract

The Mediterranean basin is characterized by hot and dry summers, which are aggravated by climate change, leading to water shortages for irrigation purposes. Olive trees (Olea europea L.) which are the most common cultivation in the area, while tolerant to drought conditions, are often irrigated due to the fact that they suffer from water deficits with negative impacts on yield. The knowledge of the onset and water stress intensity, essentially determines the accuracy of an irrigation schedule that avoids yield reduction and waste of water. Water stress can be quantified by stress coefficient Ks, as suggested by Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Combinations and adjustments of the FAO method with field measured data have been used to calculate Ks more precisely and apply it on single experimental fields. The FAO method and a validation method were compared and evaluated with in situ measurements in two different olive orchards in terms of tree age and irrigation system. The results indicate that the FAO method fails to distinguish the differences between cultivars, attributed mainly to the tree age and irrigation system, rendering almost a similar slope of Ks and calculating a nearly simultaneous onset of stress, which was not confirmed by pre-dawn water potential (Ψ_PD) measurements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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19 pages, 1418 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Study of C, N, P and K Release from Residues of Newly Proposed Cover Crops in a Spanish Olive Grove

by Antonio Rodríguez-Lizana, Miguel Ángel Repullo-Ruibérriz de Torres, Rosa Carbonell-Bojollo, Manuel Moreno-García and Rafaela Ordóñez-Fernández

Agronomy 2020, 10(7), 1041; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10071041 - 18 Jul 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3262

Abstract

Cover crops (CC)s are increasingly employed by farmers in olive groves. Spontaneous soil cover is the most commonly used CC. Its continuous utilization changes ruderal flora. It is necessary to study new CCs. Living CCs provide C and nutrients to soil during decomposition. Information on this issue in olive groves is scarce. A 4-year field study involving grab sampling of Brachypodium distachyon, Sinapis alba and spontaneous CC residues was conducted to study C and nutrient release from cover crop residues. Throughout the decomposition cycles, C, N and P release accounted for 40 to 58% of the C, N and P amounts in the residues after mowing. Most K was released (80–90%). Expressed in kg per hectare, the release of C and N in Brachypodium (C: 4602, N: 181, P: 29, K: 231) and Sinapis (C: 4806, N: 152, P: 18, K: 195) was greater than that in spontaneous CC (C: 3115, N: 138, P: 21, K: 256). The opposite results were observed for K. The Rickman model, employed to estimate the amount of C, N and P in residues, yielded a good match between the simulated and measured values. In comparison to spontaneous CC, the newly proposed CCs have a higher potential to provide soil with C and N. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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12 pages, 1434 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Compatibility between “Arbequina” and “Souri” Olive Cultivars May Increase Souri Fruit Set

by Iris Biton, Yair Many, Ali Mazen and Giora Ben-Ari

Agronomy 2020, 10(6), 910; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10060910 - 25 Jun 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3223

Abstract

The “Souri” olive cultivar, which is autochthonous to the eastern Mediterranean region, has been the major olive variety cultivated traditionally under rain-fed conditions in northern Israel. The aim of this study was to determine the optimal pollen donor for the olive cultivar Souri in order to maximize Souri fruit set. Artificial cross pollination of Souri flowers with several local varieties has identified the “Nabali” as the most efficient pollinizer of the Souri. However, further experiments using artificial cross pollination conducted with cultivars not common to this region have revealed the “Arbequina” as a more efficient pollinizer of the Souri cultivar than the Nabali. Based on a preliminary paternity analysis, the Nabali was identified as the dominant pollinizer of Souri trees in traditional olive orchards in the north of Israel. However, in a multi-variety orchard, molecular paternity analysis has shown Arbequina to be the most frequent pollinizer. We then tested, during two consecutive years, whether the presence of a pollen-producing Arbequina tree adjoining Souri trees in the field will increase their fruit set. We found that Souri fruit set was 8.36% when pollinized by an Arbequina tree in close proximity to them, significantly higher than the fruit set of 5.6% for Souri trees without the nearby Arbequina cultivar. On the basis of these trials, we expect that the yield of Souri orchards will improve if Arbequina trees are planted. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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Review

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16 pages, 1760 KiB

Open AccessReview

Elevated Temperatures Negatively Affect Olive Productive Cycle and Oil Quality

by Giora Ben-Ari, Iris Biton, Yair Many, Dvory Namdar and Alon Samach

Agronomy 2021, 11(8), 1492; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11081492 - 27 Jul 2021

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3830

Abstract

Climate change, with elevated temperatures throughout the year, affects many stages of the reproductive growth and development of olives as well as oil quality at harvest. Although olive (Olea europaea L.) is well adapted to the environmental conditions of the Mediterranean Basin, agricultural techniques and breeding through selection programs will have to adapt to these climate change, threatening to worsen in the near future. Defining the pathways controlling high fruit productivity and oil quantity and quality, despite elevated temperatures and sub-optimal growing conditions, is important for coping with current and predicted climate changes. As breeding programs aiming to address these crucial changes may take several decades, an urgent need to designate specific olive cultivars that are more resistant to high temperatures emerges. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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15 pages, 1218 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Mediterranean Olive Orchards under Climate Change: A Review of Future Impacts and Adaptation Strategies

by Helder Fraga, Marco Moriondo, Luisa Leolini and João A. Santos

Agronomy 2021, 11(1), 56; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11010056 - 29 Dec 2020

Cited by 133 | Viewed by 13692

Abstract

The olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is an ancient traditional crop in the Mediterranean Basin. In the Mediterranean region, traditional olive orchards are distinguishable by their prevailing climatic conditions. Olive trees are indeed considered one of the most suitable and best-adapted species to the Mediterranean-type climate. However, new challenges are predicted to arise from climate change, threatening this traditional crop. The Mediterranean Basin is considered a climate change “hotspot,” as future projections hint at considerable warming and drying trends. Changes in olive tree suitability have already been reported over the last few decades. In this context, climate change may become particularly challenging for olive growers. The growing evidence for significant climate change in the upcoming decades urges adaptation measures to be taken. To effectively cope with the projected changes, both short and long-term adaptation strategies must be timely planned by the sector stakeholders and decision-makers to adapt for a warmer and dryer future. The current manuscript is devoted to illustrating the main impacts of climate change on olive tree cultivation in the Mediterranean Basin, by reviewing the most recent studies on this subject. Additionally, an analysis of possible adaptation strategies against the potentially negative impacts of climate change was also performed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mediterranean Olive Trees and Olive Oil under Climate Change)

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