Growli
Let's go

Mature size & growth rate

How big does Olive Tree (Olea europaea) get?

Also called common olive, European olive.

More about olive tree

About Olive Tree

Olea europaea · also called common olive, European olive · edible

The olive is a long-lived evergreen Mediterranean tree with silvery-grey leaves, grown for fruit, oil, and as an architectural specimen. It loves full sun and sharp drainage, tolerates drought and poor soil, and survives short frosts to around -10C. In cool climates it makes an excellent container plant needing winter shelter.

Mature size: 4-8 m tall in the ground over decades; easily kept to 1.5-2.5 m as a clipped container or patio tree.

Indoor size vs how big it gets in the wild

Olive Tree is a tree at heart. Indoors a pot and your ceiling keep it to 4-8 m tall in the ground over decades, but in the ground it is a different scale of plant entirely (easily kept to 1.5-2.5 m as a clipped container or patio tree.). Indoors and in a pot, expect 4-8 m tall in the ground over decades. In the ground with no restriction it is a completely different plant — easily kept to 1.5-2.5 m as a clipped container or patio tree. — which is why the pot, the light and the pruning matter so much for the size you actually end up with.

It gains real height on a trunk or main stem, adding a tier of leaves a year and eventually reaching for the ceiling — this is a plant you grow up, not out.

Growth rate and years to mature

Olive Tree is a slow grower. Realistically, expect a decade or more — slow growers like this add only a few centimetres a year, so expect 8-15+ years to reach their indoor ceiling. Its feeding profile backs this up: feed lightly with a balanced fertiliser in spring and midsummer; container olives benefit from a slow-release feed or fortnightly liquid feed in the growing season. olives are low-feeders, so avoid overfeeding, which produces soft, frost-tender growth.

Want this turned into the right next pot at the right moment? The pot size calculator and the olive tree repotting guide cover when and how much to size up — pot size is one of the biggest levers on how fast olive tree grows.

How to keep olive tree smaller

You are not stuck with the maximum size. For olive tree specifically, these are the levers, in order of impact:

The keep-it-smaller method, step by step

  1. Pick the new height. Decide how tall you want olive tree and find a leaf node or branch point just below that.
  2. Top the main stem. Cut the main growing tip cleanly just above that node in spring; this permanently caps the height and forces side branches.
  3. Keep the pot snug. Avoid jumping to a much bigger pot — a slightly restricted rootball keeps the whole plant smaller.
  4. Maintain the shape. Prune back the tallest new leaders each spring to hold it at the height you chose.

How to grow olive tree bigger or faster

If you want it to fill the space sooner, push the conditions rather than hoping — for olive tree the accelerators are:

Light is almost always the ceiling. The olive tree light requirements page covers exactly how bright a spot it needs to grow at its potential instead of stalling.

When olive tree outgrows the room (or the pot)

"Too big" usually arrives as one of these signs for olive tree:

If it is the pot rather than the room, it is a repotting job, not a goodbye — see the olive tree repotting guide. If you want more of this plant instead of a bigger one, the olive tree propagation guide turns prunings into new plants.

Olive Tree size — frequently asked questions

How big does olive tree get?

Olive Tree reaches 4-8 m tall in the ground over decades when grown indoors, and far larger where it grows unrestricted (easily kept to 1.5-2.5 m as a clipped container or patio tree.). It gains real height on a trunk or main stem, adding a tier of leaves a year and eventually reaching for the ceiling — this is a plant you grow up, not out.

Is olive tree slow or fast growing?

Olive Tree is a slow grower. Expect a decade or more — slow growers like this add only a few centimetres a year, so expect 8-15+ years to reach their indoor ceiling. Olive Tree is a tree at heart. Indoors a pot and your ceiling keep it to 4-8 m tall in the ground over decades, but in the ground it is a different scale of plant entirely (easily kept to 1.5-2.5 m as a clipped container or patio tree.).

How long does olive tree take to reach full size?

Roughly a decade or more — slow growers like this add only a few centimetres a year, so expect 8-15+ years to reach their indoor ceiling. Light, pot size and feeding move that timeline more than anything else.

How do I keep olive tree smaller?

The decisive tool is the secateurs: olive tree can be topped (cut the main growing tip) to cap its height and force a bushier, shorter shape. Keeping it deliberately pot-bound in a snug container slows the whole plant and limits ultimate size. Prune in spring so it heals fast; remove the tallest leader back to a node to reset the height. Good news: slow growth means topping it once buys you years before it needs doing again.

How can I make olive tree grow bigger or faster?

It already wants the bright light it needs; warmth, a yearly pot-up and spring-summer feed are the accelerators. Pot up a size every year or two while young; restricted roots are the main thing holding height back. Feed regularly through the growing season and keep it warm — height comes from sustained good conditions.

Keep reading