Domakihub How to prune an olive tree
A well-pruned olive tree gets more light and air, stays healthy and fruits better. Here's how to shape one without overdoing it.
Reviewed by Domakihub garden pros · 2026-06-23 · 5 min read
Olives fruit on last year's growth and love light, so pruning is about opening the tree up rather than cutting it back hard. The video above shows the shaping cuts; the steps below are the order the pros work in, plus the timing that matters in Greece.
When to prune in Greece
The window is late winter to spring, once hard frosts have passed and before or around flowering. Avoid heavy pruning in the heat of summer or just before winter cold. Use clean, sharp tools and cut back to a branch or bud, not mid-stem.
Prune an olive tree in 5 steps
- 1
Start with the three D's
Remove anything dead, damaged or diseased first. This alone clears a lot and lets you see the tree's structure.
- 2
Open the centre
Olives crop best in light. Thin out branches growing inward or crossing so the middle of the canopy is open — the classic 'goblet' or vase shape that lets sun and air through.
- 3
Remove suckers and water shoots
Pull or cut the suckers from the base and the vertical 'water shoots' that shoot straight up — they sap energy and never fruit well.
- 4
Shape, don't shear
Lightly shorten over-long branches back to a side branch to keep the form. Don't hedge-trim the outside into a ball; that just creates dense, shaded growth.
- 5
Don't take too much
Keep total removal to about a third in any year. Clean cuts heal on their own — no need to paint or seal them.
Rather have a pro handle it?
Get a vetted gardening pro in your city — one number, booked in EN/EL/DE.
FAQ
- When is the best time to prune olive trees in Greece?
- Late winter to spring, after the frost risk and around flowering. Light tidying can be done after harvest, but save hard pruning for spring.
- Will pruning reduce my olive harvest?
- Light, regular pruning improves cropping by letting in light. Only very heavy cutting in one go reduces fruit for a season or two.
- Can I cut an overgrown olive tree back hard?
- Yes, mature olives tolerate hard renovation pruning, but do it over two or three years rather than all at once to avoid stress and a flush of water shoots.