The Olive (Olea europaea) is a small evergreen tree that grows best in a Mediteranean climate. Spain, Italy, Greece, and other Mediterranean countries are major producers, but olives are also cultivated outside the Mediterranean region in regions with an appropriate climate (e.g., in in California and Argentina).

The olive fruit has a skin, a fleshy pulp, and a stony kernel. As the fruit matures, it turns from green to black. Some archaeological evidence suggests that the Olive may have been domesticated in the eastern Mediterranean region 10,000 years ago. Certainly, this species has been closely associated with human religious, cultural, medical, and food uses for thousands of years.

Known since the remotest times, the Olive Tree, was considered in different contexts and by different peoples a sacred plant. According to the myth, in ancient Greece, Athena and Poseidon fought for the name of the capital. Zeus decided that the winner was the one who created something useful for humanity. The victory went to the goddess, who created the first olive plant…