Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Texas Olive Shrub
Texas olive is a big, rounded shrub from southern Texas and Mexico with large, leathery, gray-green leaves. Left full to the ground, it fills in as a dense background screen about 10 to 15 feet tall and wide. White flowers with yellow throats open in clusters from spring through fall. It takes full sun and reflected heat and needs moderate water once it is rooted.
Best for: a dense background screen along a back wall, a large flowering shrub in a hot, sunny bed, a windbreak, and a stand-in for white oleander.
As a shrub, Texas olive usually grows about 10 to 15 feet tall and wide, with leaves down to the ground. It is used as a dense background screen and as a windbreak. It is slow, so start with a larger size where you need cover soon.
Clusters of white flowers with yellow throats open from spring through fall, heaviest in spring. Hummingbirds and butterflies visit them. In bloom it looks much like a rounded white oleander.
It grows well in full sun and reflected heat, so it suits a hot wall or corner. It has no thorns, and it gets by on little water once it is rooted.
It is slow to fill in, most of all on little water. The olive-like fruit is messy and can stain paving, so keep it away from patios, walks and pools. A hard freeze browns the leaves, and they hang on until spring.
- Plant to plant20 ft or more apart, center to center
Water every 3 to 4 days for the first two weeks, then every 5 to 7 days. Stretch it to every 7 to 10 days, then every 10 to 14 days by weeks 7 and 8.
Soak it deeply about every 2 to 3 weeks in summer and about once a month in winter. Regular water while it is young keeps it from being very slow. Let the soil dry between soaks so the roots do not rot.
Prune lightly and only now and then to shape it or to remove cold damage. Beyond that it needs little pruning.
Leaves are damaged at about 25°F and can turn brown or drop. Branches can die back below about 22°F. Wait until new growth starts in spring, then prune off what is dead.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
How big does a Texas olive shrub get?
As a shrub it usually grows about 10 to 15 feet tall and wide. It can get larger in deep soil with plenty of water, so give it room and do not plant it under a window.
How fast does it grow?
It is a slow grower, and very slow unless you water it regularly while it is young. Keep up deep soaks in its first summers. The size guide helps you pick a larger start.
Is Texas olive a good screen?
Yes. It is used as a dense screening shrub, a background planting and a windbreak. It takes time to reach a useful size, so plant larger sizes where you need cover soon.
How should I prune a Texas olive shrub?
Prune lightly and not often, only to shape it. After a hard freeze, wait for new growth in spring and then cut off dead branches.
How often should I water it?
New plants need water every 3 to 4 days at first, stretching to every 10 to 14 days by the second month. Once rooted, soak it deeply every 2 to 3 weeks in summer and about monthly in winter.
When does it bloom, and what visits the flowers?
It blooms from spring through fall, heaviest in spring, with another flush after the summer rains. Hummingbirds, butterflies and bees visit the flowers, and birds eat the fruit.
Does it stay green in winter?
It keeps its leaves in mild winters. Around 25°F the leaves are damaged and can drop, and it is rated hardy to about 22°F. Cover young plants with frost cloth on freezing nights.
Is Texas olive messy?
Yes, somewhat. It drops flowers and olive-like fruit, and the fruit makes a mess on paving. Plant it in a bed away from patios, walks, driveways and pools.
Is the fruit a real olive?
No. Texas olive is not related to the true olive tree. The pale fruit is edible but not tasty, and the fresh fruit is slightly toxic, so it is best left for the birds.
What soil does it need?
It grows in sand, clay and rocky soil. Good drainage matters most, so do not overwater it. Soggy soil can rot the roots.
Texas Olive Shrub for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
Texas olive grows naturally as a large, rounded shrub, and this is the shrub form, left full to the ground. Valley homeowners use it as a dense background screen with white flowers from spring through fall. Below is what to expect, from size and spacing to water, pruning, cold and how it compares with white oleander.
Sourced from trusted Arizona growers and delivered directly to your door, job site, or property. We deliver across the Valley and to nearby towns, and quote delivery anywhere else in Arizona.
How big does a Texas olive shrub get in Arizona?
As a shrub it usually grows about 10 to 15 feet tall and wide in the Valley. It gets larger in deep soil with plenty of water. The shape is rounded and dense.
Is Texas olive a good privacy screen?
It is used as a dense screening shrub and background planting, and it holds most of its leaves in mild winters. It grows slowly, so larger sizes give cover sooner.
Texas olive vs white oleander
In bloom, Texas olive looks much like a rounded white oleander, and it is used as a substitute for it. It is a slow grower with large, leathery leaves and no thorns.
How often do you water Texas olive in Phoenix?
Once rooted, a deep soak every 2 to 3 weeks in summer and about once a month in winter is enough. Water it more regularly while it is young, because it is very slow when kept dry.
Does Texas olive lose its leaves in winter?
It keeps them in mild winters. Leaves are damaged at about 25°F, and it is rated hardy to about 22°F. Prune off dead branches once new growth starts in spring.
Does Texas olive take full sun and reflected heat?
Yes. It does best in full sun and handles reflected heat from walls. It grows slowly there, and regular deep water while it is young speeds it up.
Texas olive shrub vs Texas olive tree
They are the same plant. The shrub form is left full to the ground for screening. The tree form has its canopy raised on one or several trunks, and we carry both forms.
We deliver across the Valley, from Phoenix, Scottsdale and Mesa out to San Tan Valley, Maricopa and Casa Grande, and up to Prescott, Sedona, Payson and Globe. See delivery areas and rates.