CENTRE FOR OLIVE TREES

The project is located in Ostuni, a small city situated in the southern region of Italy known as Puglia. During our visit to Puglia, a significant problem facing the area was the decline of olive trees caused by a bacterium Xylella Fastidiosa. This bacterium leads to the death of olive trees by inducing hydric stress, and it has affected approximately one-third of the 60 million olive trees in Puglia. To combat this destructive disease in Puglia, my project focuses on a primary preventive measure known as grafting. By grafting new varieties of olive trees, such as the immune Leccino and Favolosa varieties into existing stock the original olive tree can then fight off the bacterium. Through educational spaces like lecture areas, libraries, and laboratories, the project aims to research and educate locals about the grafting process, contributing to the preservation of olive trees. In cases where olive trees are infected with Xylella Fastidiosa, they are uprooted to prevent further disease transmission. The second part of my project explores the reuse of these uprooted olive trees and their potential new functions. The project looks at turning the uprooted olive trees into building components such as louvres, shingles, and tree nodes.