RE: Olive understory

Under my small adolescent Olives (4-5+ meters)  which themselves are growing beneath/beside lofty Pinus halepensis) are Pittosprum tobira which do very well and  I also grow Myrtle communis ( a bit slow) Ficus pumila, Vinca major and V.minor. Because Olives are planted here in his part of Spain for the fruit one doesn't see too many Olives in the natural scape of the environment. These fruiting Olives have no understory of plants obviously as the farmers need to put the nets out to gather them and keep them free of weeds. 
 
Pamela
(Living right beside the Mediterranean Sea)
 
 -----Original Message-----
From: owner-medit-plants@ucdavis.edu [mailto:owner-medit-plants@ucdavis.edu]On Behalf Of Ben Wiswall
Sent: 17 February 2009 19:57
To: medit plants forum
Subject: Olive understory

Hi All,
This question is directed mostly to members living near the Mediterranean Sea.
About a year ago I asked what did well under Olive trees, and had some helpful responses, but I'm still in a quandary.

I have a side yard planted with six olive trees and an adjacent small live oak and a few melaleucas.  Initially the understory was a successful combination of Cistus ladanifer and Lavandula stoechas 'Otto Quast', but as the olives' shade increased, the shrubs declined.  I've been experimenting, with fragaria, iris, nerine, arctostaphylos, carpenteria, ceanothus, but none of the subjects have really taken with enthusiasm.  Most are living, but none are luxuriating.  The trees are at that adolescent stage, not quite shade-giving canopies, but more than large shrubs.  This year's experiments include Salvia 'Mrs. Beard' and Salvia spathacea.

It's been years and years since I visited the Mediterranean, so here is my question to you: what NATURALLY grows in an olive woods?  Is the ground bare? Is there a dense under-story of shrubs? Or is it low herbaceous ground-covers?  Knowing what occurs in nature would better help me choose plants in my garden.

Thanks for your help.
-Ben Artmentrout-Wiswall
Simi Valley, inland Ventura County
Southern California
(Probably more like Tripoli than Nice)
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