They begin as bright, light green and slowly turns a bit yellow-greenish, then dark purple and eventually black if left on the tree.
To be honest, I was quite surprised when I began to realize how common olive trees are in the West Bank and how often I see them growing in nature. If I look out my window, I can see olive trees growing on the sides of the hills across the way from my apartment. This is quite different from my experience of living in North Miami Beach, where if I want to see plants and trees that grow fruit for harvesting, I have to drive at least 45 minutes away to farmland.
I was also surprised because I didn’t know just how significant olive trees are in Palestinian culture and society. There is a tangible sense of community, cooperation, joy and hard work that surrounds olives trees during the olive harvesting season, which is between mid-September until mid-November. Olive trees and the olive harvest are important because they are major contributors to the Palestinian economy, and because they have been around for thousands of years and symbolize a connection to the land. Many families and farmers who partake in the harvesting season often times are harvesting olives from the same trees that generations of their family members have harvested before. The harvest season is such a significant event that schools and universities give students a holiday so they may go with their families to help pick olives during the harvesting period.
Olive picking is something that requires all hands on deck and anyone can partake in. Families who live in cities often go to their heritage towns and villages to help pick olives.
