Urban foraging: olive edition
August 17, 2015 11:36 AM Subscribe
There are a lot of olive trees on my university campus. I'd like to harvest some of the olives--do I have to worry about environmental contaminants?
I'm a student at a large university in a medium-sized city. The campus is full of olive trees, and for years I've been walking under the trees looking hungrily at the olives--and then a few weeks later walking under the trees looking sadly at the piles of olives decomposing on the ground. I want to rescue some olives from this dreary fate and bring them to a more delicious fate.
My concern, of course, is that although the trees are on a university campus--not next to a factory or highway or something--this is still the middle of a city, not a pristine olive grove in the country. So, first: is this idea a complete non-starter for reasons of safety or taste? Second: if not, is there something I should do to clean the olives before curing them, beyond a thorough rinse?
For what it's worth, this city ranks fairly high for air quality, and especially high for particulate matter (ozone is another story).
I'm a student at a large university in a medium-sized city. The campus is full of olive trees, and for years I've been walking under the trees looking hungrily at the olives--and then a few weeks later walking under the trees looking sadly at the piles of olives decomposing on the ground. I want to rescue some olives from this dreary fate and bring them to a more delicious fate.
My concern, of course, is that although the trees are on a university campus--not next to a factory or highway or something--this is still the middle of a city, not a pristine olive grove in the country. So, first: is this idea a complete non-starter for reasons of safety or taste? Second: if not, is there something I should do to clean the olives before curing them, beyond a thorough rinse?
For what it's worth, this city ranks fairly high for air quality, and especially high for particulate matter (ozone is another story).
Seconding talk to the grounds crew.
My friends and I did this for several years in the heart or Silicon Valley. The first step in our brining procedure was a couple of very thorough, 24 hour, fresh water soaks/washes.
We never had them tested or anything but they sure tasted great.
posted by Mr.Me at 11:51 AM on August 17, 2015
My friends and I did this for several years in the heart or Silicon Valley. The first step in our brining procedure was a couple of very thorough, 24 hour, fresh water soaks/washes.
We never had them tested or anything but they sure tasted great.
posted by Mr.Me at 11:51 AM on August 17, 2015
Talk to the grounds crew, verify perhaps even with the botany department if grounds is not sure.
Our corporate campus is shaded by black olive trees and as far as we are aware they are inedible to humans (the my boss' boss did the research as she wasn't too fond of letting potentially edible food go to waste either).
posted by tilde at 11:57 AM on August 17, 2015
Our corporate campus is shaded by black olive trees and as far as we are aware they are inedible to humans (the my boss' boss did the research as she wasn't too fond of letting potentially edible food go to waste either).
posted by tilde at 11:57 AM on August 17, 2015
The thing I personally would mostly be bothered by is the idea of pesticides/herbicides or some kind of fertiliser having been sprayed in the area by the ground crew. A good wash in a salad spinner would likely shift most if not all of that - it's unlikely that the trees themselves have been sprayed, but there may be a little drift from anything going on nearby.
Bear in mind that I eat blackberries right from the bush, no washing at all. I'd also caution to not pick from below waist height, but it sounds like that's not going to be relevant here. Farming practices generally aren't too concerned with testing fruit/veg for things like pesticide residue, I don't think, and people seem to do OK.
posted by Solomon at 12:11 PM on August 17, 2015
Bear in mind that I eat blackberries right from the bush, no washing at all. I'd also caution to not pick from below waist height, but it sounds like that's not going to be relevant here. Farming practices generally aren't too concerned with testing fruit/veg for things like pesticide residue, I don't think, and people seem to do OK.
posted by Solomon at 12:11 PM on August 17, 2015
Best answer: I was pretty sure where you go to school even before I clicked on your profile.
Here's an article from two years ago you might find interesting: Community harvests campus olive trees
And you might contact this guy.
posted by Squeak Attack at 12:30 PM on August 17, 2015 [3 favorites]
Here's an article from two years ago you might find interesting: Community harvests campus olive trees
And you might contact this guy.
posted by Squeak Attack at 12:30 PM on August 17, 2015 [3 favorites]
Unless the olive trees were planted on some weird contaminated soil (most unlikely), then the only risk is pesticides. There is no airborne pollutant that would survive a thorough rinsing. Given that olives are tough as buggery and don't need any pesticides, it is very unlikely that they would have been sprayed. I guess you should check, but the chance is better than excellent that with a good rinse and then comprehensive brining, they will be perfectly fine to eat.
Actually in agricultural areas there would be a far higher risk of contamination, from spray drift from nearby cropland.
posted by wilful at 7:23 PM on August 17, 2015
Actually in agricultural areas there would be a far higher risk of contamination, from spray drift from nearby cropland.
posted by wilful at 7:23 PM on August 17, 2015
Best answer: My olive tree lined university campus (which sounds suspiciously similar to yours) started holding an annual olive harvest in 2013. It's a pretty cool project that partners with a local refugee resettlement organization to produce and sell olive oil. I'd always heard that many of the olive trees are some inedible species, but I'm not sure if that's really true or just a ploy to make people feel better about the mess all over the sidewalk.
posted by ecmendenhall at 7:25 PM on August 17, 2015
posted by ecmendenhall at 7:25 PM on August 17, 2015
Fruit (which an olive is) tends to not take on soil contaminants in the same way that leaves or just eating the soil (a la a potato) would do. I can't imagine there are problems with the olives - even if they spray pesticides, then just wash them. Just remember that olives require a lot of work before they are edible - like months of soaking, rinsing and soaking again.
posted by Toddles at 9:18 PM on August 17, 2015
posted by Toddles at 9:18 PM on August 17, 2015
Response by poster: Well, Squeak Attack and ecmendenhall have guessed correctly--I am at Arizona, and although I somehow managed to be completely unaware of UA LEAF and their olive harvest, they are the folks I should talk to for details. I guess the fact that there is an olive harvest at all resolves the edibility question. Thanks for the links, and thanks to everyone for the tips!
posted by egregious theorem at 9:41 PM on August 17, 2015
posted by egregious theorem at 9:41 PM on August 17, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by St. Hubbins at 11:46 AM on August 17, 2015 [1 favorite]