Try growing your own olives with this ornamental evergreen with fragrant small white flowers when established.

Ideal grown as an indoor houseplant or to add a touch of the Mediterranean to your patio during the summer.

Protect plants from frost.

Height: Up to 3m (10ft)

Sow at any time of year.

Sow into pots or trays of moist seed compost and cover with a 3mm (⅛in) layer of compost or vermiculite. Place in a propagator or warm place, and keep at a temperature of around 18-21C (65-70F). After sowing, do not exclude light as this helps germination. Keep the surface of the compost moist but not waterlogged; germination will usually take 1-4 months.

Pricking out (Transplanting). When large enough to handle, transplant seedlings into 7.5cm (3in) pots of good, soil-less compost.

Pot on as required finally into 25-30cm (10-12in) pots. Water moderately and provide a temperature of 7-15C (45-60F) throughout the winter.

Plants can be stood outside in a sunny sheltered spot for the summer and given frost protection for the winter.