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Olives - Getting Started
Greenstone Growers Products & Services (GSG)
Greenstone Growers ("GSG") offers a wide range of products and services to help you get "up and growing" with olive trees quickly, easily, and for less! GSG has helped many small farms with personal residences, just like yours, properly prepare, protect and plant olives trees. Before you spend thousands of dollars planting olive trees yourself, or with a local landscaper, let GSG provide you with some money-saving tips, insights and suggestions. It will be time will spend!
* Email us at info@gsgrowers.com if you would like to be added to our Confidential email update list. Please include your name, city, number of olive trees and email address.
Products/Services Overview. Below are some of the products and services that GSG provides:
A) Featured Product/Service
B) Getting Started with Olive Trees guide,
C) On-site consulting services,
D) Phone/email Q&A services,
E) MVG basket cutting services,
F) Hole digging & dirt sifting,
G) Winter freeze covers & mount,
H) Local seminars & workshops,
I) Olive tree orchard tours, and
J) Email the OTT/CO-OP.
FEATURED PRODUCT
A) SPECIAL Group Buy: Olive Tree Fruit Fly Bait - 100 tablet multiples
Ordering NOW CLOSED - Sorry (Ended: March 31, 2017)
We SAVED over 40% by ordering together!
If you would like to join our next "group buy" send an email to info@gsgrowers.com with your information and desired number of fruit fly bait tablets. We'll keep you posted!
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We SAVED over 40% by ordering together!
If you would like to join our next "group buy" send an email to info@gsgrowers.com with your information and desired number of fruit fly bait tablets. We'll keep you posted!
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The general rule-of-thumb for calculating the number of fruit fly bait tablets you will need is to take your "number of producing trees" x "number of fruiting months" (e.g. May-Oct = 6) for smaller olive trees (< 8' tall) or 3 times that number for larger (> 8' tall) olive trees. For example, 30 smaller olive trees x 6 months = 180 tablets. Order 200 tablets. If your olive trees are larger you would order 600 tablets. Generally, 1 tablet is put into 1 pint traps/bottles each month for smaller trees. Three (3) tablets are put into 1.5L traps/bottles each month for larger olive trees.
HOMEMADE FRUIT FLY TRAPS: Instructions for making your own (homemade) fruit fly traps for less than $1 each can be found on the Farm Bureau's web site by clicking here.
B) Getting Started with Olive Trees Guide. GSG's "Getting Started with Olive Trees" guide is a soup-to-nuts reference document covering all of the topics listed below. Once purchased, our Getting Started document will be emailed to you within 24 hours (usually much sooner :-). Simply open the document in Microsoft Word (or equivalent) and start reading through the "Getting Started" sections at your own pace. It will provide links to our Preparing, Protecting, and Planting video, irrigation supply lists, tips on selecting olive tree varietals, links to the industry's best articles on olive trees, plus more. It also includes our "Top Seven Go/No Go Decisions" for planting olive trees. It's a must see before you start planting olive trees. Only $19.99 (List $39.99) during our Winter Special! SAVE 50%
"WOW. This was exactly what I need to get started. It helped me to determine if my property was right for planting olive trees, to understand what I needed to do regarding my irrigation system, and to understand what I needed to do after my olive trees were planted. Thanks for putting all of this information in one place!"
I. GSG's Preparing, Protecting, and Planting video link;
II. Links to the best industry articles, fruit fly spraying, etc;
III. Selecting olive trees, varietals, temperatures, etc;
IV. Making mole/vole/gopher (MVG) baskets;
V. Research papers and materials on olive trees;
VI. El Dorado Country SFIR program criteria/requirements;
VII. Federal and State government farm-related information;
VII. Suppliers of irrigation, hardware, and related supply lists;
IX. ARC committee, landscapers, arborists, tree spraying and more...
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C) On-site Consulting Services. Whether you are 1) new to small farming, or 2) have already planted your olive orchard and have specific irrigation/fertilization/maintenance questions, and/or 3) are trying to get the straight-scoop on renewing your Small Farm Irrigation Rate (SFIR) application, GSG can provide you with reduced rate "on-site" consulting services. This is being done strickly as a service for small farms located in the Placerville, CA (USA) area. That includes El Dorado Hills, Cameron Park, Shingle Springs, El Dorado, Diamond Springs, Placerville, Lotus, Camino, and Pollock Pines. GSG's reduced [subsidized] rates for small farms with a personal residence are only $125 p/hr within 10 miles of Placerville, CA. That's a 50% Savings off our traditional $250 p/hr (non-subsidized) consulting rate.
" I would have spent hundreds of hours researching this information on my own. It's well worth it... Thanks!"
Preparing, protecting, and planting olive trees is much different than most trees, no matter what your landscaper might tell you. Just take a look around El Dorado County and you will see a variety of "successful" olive orchards and some that are "not so successful". Before you spend $2,000-$3,000 (or more) planting olive trees, let GSG help. Imagine spending all that money only to have your olive trees die.
"I found out that my property was not right for planting olive trees. While I was disappointed, that saved me at least $2,000 (i.e. that my landscaper wanted to charge me). He never told me that olive trees weren't right for my property. That was money well spent."
If you are an existing small farmer that has questions about maintaining your olive orchard and/or have questions regarding EID's and the Department of Agriculture's (DoA) current interpretation of the Small Farm Irrigation Rate (SFIR) program including its rules and regulations, GSG can help. We've spent countless hours talking, emailing and meeting with EID/DoA on the SFIR program. We'll provide you with unbiased information on the SFIR program so that you can make the best decision possible for your specific situation.
"I met with GSG a couple weeks ago. Apparently, my interpretation of the SFIR rules and regulations was quite different than those currently being implemented by EID and the DoA. I would have been kicked off the SFIR program if I hadn't met with GSG prior to submitting my SFIR renewal application. My $3,000 orchard investment, my small farm water rate and my $100 application fee would have all been lost. It was time well spent!"
IMPORTANT: A typical consulting Q&A session with GSG runs about 1 hour per topic (e.g. SFIR program renewal, orchard maintenance and soil testing, new orchard planting, etc). As such, if you want to discuss multiple topics, please sign up for multiple hours. Since many of our appointments are booked back-to-back, please make sure to reserve enough time for us to answer all of your questions :-) Thank you!
* Should your consulting session exceed the time frame pre-purchased, GSG will bill you for the difference at the $125 p/hr rate. As such, if you think that you will need more than 1 hour (e.g. assistance locating your trees, you have many questions, you haven't read the "Getting Started" tutorial or watched the "Olive Trees 101" video, etc), it's better to purchase 2 hours in advance at the lower p/hr rate :-)
"This was the best money that I've ever spent on consulting services. It's put me well on my way to becoming a profitable small farm. Plus, GSG's "group buy" services have saved me hundreds of dollars. Thank you!"
To purchase your On-site Consulting Session please click on button below. You can use the pull-down menu to select your 1, 2, or 3 hour consulting session. Then proceed to Check Out and follow the instructions. It's easy. A GSG representative will contact you within 24 hours, during normal business hours (M-F, 9am-5pm PST, USA), to schedule your on-site visit.
Note: If your on-site consulting session is located more than five miles from the intersection of Hwy 50 and Greenstone Road, additional travel fees may apply. Contact us at info@gsgrowers.com for more information.
D) Olive Tree Phone/Email Q&A Services. If you are interested in speaking (or emailing) with a GSG representative regarding your olive tree-related questions, the cost is $65 for 30 minutes (minimum) or $125 for 60 minutes of phone/email Q&A time. That's a 50% Savings off our traditional $250 p/hr (non-subsidized) consulting rate.
"It's really nice to have someone to call with questions regarding olive trees. I called a couple of the larger growers in the area and they wouldn't even return my phone calls. If you have questions regarding olive trees, call Greenstone Growers. They got back to me right away and answered all of my questions."
Once the appropriate time option has been purchased (below), one of our GSG representatives will be glad to email/call you. Topics traditionally include selecting the right olive tree varietals, participating in GSG's next "group buy" of olive trees, appropriately spacing your olive trees, digging the right hole size(s), selecting a landscaper, providing adequate protection from moles/voles/gophers, installing the right irrigation system, properly preparing the soil for olive trees, discuss watering durations, and more... A typical Q&A phone call will last approximately 30 minutes. A typical detailed phone call will last approximately 60 minutes. Or, you can purchase/download GSG "Getting Started with Olive Trees" tutorial in Section D (below) first. That might answer most all of your questions thus shortening the Q&A time required. Save time and money with GSG's range of services. It's your choice :-)
To purchase your Olive Tree Phone/Email Q&A minutes please click on the 30 or 60 Minute Q&A services listed below. Then proceed to Check Out and follow the instructions. A GSG representative will contact you within 24 hours, during normal business hours (M-F, 9am-5pm PST, USA), to schedule your on-site visit.
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******* Legal Stuff *******
By clicking on any of the "Buy Now" buttons below, Buyer confirms acceptance of Greenstone Growers' "Disclaimer of Warranties" and "Limitation of Liability" clauses. Disclaimer of Warranties: Greenstone Growers makes no warranty, either expressed or implied, including without limitation, any implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, as to the description, quality or services provided, or as to any other matter. Limitation of Liability: Buyer hereby agrees that it sole and exclusive remedy in connection to this, or any Greenstone Growers order is limited to, at the option of Greenstone Growers, a replacement of the purchased services or a return of the purchase price, and Buyer waives any right to lost profits, loss of use, or any other form of direct, special, consequential or punitive damages.
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SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS For Sections E-I
"How to Order Multiple GSG Products/Services"
1. Click on the desired "Add to Cart" button (below) for the product and/or service that you would like to order (e.g. MVG Basket Cutting Services).
2. Enter the "quantity" of items that you would like to order in the provided box (e.g. "30" MVG Basket Cutting Services). Then click on "Update". Your total will be updated.
3. If you want to purchase additional products or services simply click on "Continue Shopping". You will be returned to GSG's web site to order your next product/service.
4 Repeat Steps #1-3 for all of the products and/or services that you would like to order.
5. When your order is complete, either a) click on "Check Out" for credit card purchases or b) click on "Check out with PayPal" if you have PayPal payment account.
6. Your order will be processed. You will receive an order confirmation email from PayPal within minutes.
7. GSG will contact you within 24 hours (M-F) via email to confirm your product order and/or to schedule your services. It's easy with GSG!
2. Enter the "quantity" of items that you would like to order in the provided box (e.g. "30" MVG Basket Cutting Services). Then click on "Update". Your total will be updated.
3. If you want to purchase additional products or services simply click on "Continue Shopping". You will be returned to GSG's web site to order your next product/service.
4 Repeat Steps #1-3 for all of the products and/or services that you would like to order.
5. When your order is complete, either a) click on "Check Out" for credit card purchases or b) click on "Check out with PayPal" if you have PayPal payment account.
6. Your order will be processed. You will receive an order confirmation email from PayPal within minutes.
7. GSG will contact you within 24 hours (M-F) via email to confirm your product order and/or to schedule your services. It's easy with GSG!
Thank you in advance for your Order!
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E) MVG Basket and Deer Ring Cutting Services. If you don't protect your young olive trees "underground" from moles and gophers their "roots" will most likely get eaten and your trees will die. If you don't protect your young olive trees "above ground" from deer, geese, and voles, their "leaves, branches & trunk" will get eaten and your trees will die. As such, it is essential to place mole, vole, and gopher (MVG) baskets "in the ground" and Deer Rings "above the ground" to protect your olive trees.
As you probably know, cutting wire mesh and deer fencing with standard cutting tools produces very sharp edges. That usually leads to many cuts, bruises, and bandages (see below). GSG has invested in special cutting tools that makes this job less dangerous. For a minimal fee, GSG will cut your MVG Baskets and Deer Rings for you. Then, you can assemble these items in the "comfort of your own home" for less than 1/2 the price.
For example, did you know that MVG baskets sell locally for about $18.00 each? With GSG's help/references, you can buy all of the materials locally for about $4.00 per basket and have GSG cut everything for you for about $4.00 per basket ($8.00 total). Then, you assemble the baskets for a savings of $18.00 - $8.00 = $10.00 p/basket x 30 baskets = $300.00 SAVINGS. Wow! GSG takes the blood, bandages, and bruises out of cutting MVG baskets and Deer Rings.
Note: Almost everyone has GSG cut their MVG Baskets and Deer Rings for them. Plus, you will SAVE a lot in the process :-)
As you probably know, cutting wire mesh and deer fencing with standard cutting tools produces very sharp edges. That usually leads to many cuts, bruises, and bandages (see below). GSG has invested in special cutting tools that makes this job less dangerous. For a minimal fee, GSG will cut your MVG Baskets and Deer Rings for you. Then, you can assemble these items in the "comfort of your own home" for less than 1/2 the price.
For example, did you know that MVG baskets sell locally for about $18.00 each? With GSG's help/references, you can buy all of the materials locally for about $4.00 per basket and have GSG cut everything for you for about $4.00 per basket ($8.00 total). Then, you assemble the baskets for a savings of $18.00 - $8.00 = $10.00 p/basket x 30 baskets = $300.00 SAVINGS. Wow! GSG takes the blood, bandages, and bruises out of cutting MVG baskets and Deer Rings.
Note: Almost everyone has GSG cut their MVG Baskets and Deer Rings for them. Plus, you will SAVE a lot in the process :-)
Once you are done ordering (click on "Add to Cart" below), you will receive an email from us telling you where to locally purchase the MVG basket materials and/or Deer Ring fencing rolls for the best price. Once you have purchased these materials/rolls, drop them off at GSG (i.e. our address will be provided to you in our response/confirmation email), and we'll pre-cut you're MVG baskets and/or Deer Rings for you within 3-4 days. Note: If you need your MVG baskets or Deer Rings sooner (e.g. 1 day), please click on the RUSH SERVICES button below to add "RUSH" to your order. We'll do our best to fit you in!
MVG BASKET Cutting Services: $4.00
RUSH SERVICES (1 day): $1.00
GSG "cuts" for you! You "assemble" and SAVE!
DEER RING Cutting Services: $3.00
RUSH SERVICES (1 day): $1.00
GSG "cuts" for you! You "assemble" and SAVE!
F) Hole Digging and Soil Sifting Services. If you are interested in having your olive tree holes dug for you (i.e. a very smart decision), GSG can get this done for you for about 1/2 price through our local contacts/references. What a back saver...
Soil Sifting and Hole Refilling Services: Once all of the holes are dug, it is best to sift the existing soil to remove the rocks (i.e. don't simply refill the holes with top soil) before adding the proper soil amendments and refilling the holes. GSG can get this done for you for for about 1/2 price through our local contacts/references. Plus, we'll even provide you with the best local places to buy the proper soil amendments. That way you will SAVE even more by purchasing the required soil amendments yourself!
Soil Sifting and Hole Refilling Services:
(Available only with prior GSG approval via info@gsgrowers.com)
G) Winter Freeze Protection Covers
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $14.83 (> 20 covers)
Uncovered "mature" olive trees begin to sustain damage to their stems and foliage when temperatures drop below 17F degrees. A "mature" olive tree is considered to be six (6) years and older, is usually 7-8' in height and has a trunk at least 1" thick. Olive trees that are five (5) years and younger (or smaller) need to be covered when temperatures drop below 22-23 degrees for 2 hours or more. If overnight temperatures fall below 15F degrees, even mature olive trees will most likely die (covered or not). As such, it is very important to determine the low temperatures at your olive tree planting location "before" planting olive trees.
Provided that the low temperatures in your area do not dip below 15F degrees, GSG can provide you with freeze protection covers at great "group buy" prices. Only $14.83 ea (vs $19.99) delivered to GSG (Placerville, CA) for orders > 20 covers. Orders for less than 20 covers are slightly higher. GSG will let you know when your covers arrive for easy pick-up.
ORDERING: To order your new 6' freeze protection covers, please use the pull-down menu below to select the "quantity" desired (e.g. 20, 30, 40, etc). Then click on the "Add to Cart" button. Minimum order is 5 units. GSG will try to consolidate multiple 5 and 10 units orders into boxes of 20 covers (i.e. the manufacturer's mimimum). Next, click on the "Check Out" button. Then, select either "Pay with my PayPal Account" or "Don't have a PayPal Account" to pay with a credit card :-) It's your choice!
* To get free shipping, GSG must place a minimum order of 100 covers (i.e. "group buy"). GSG will bundle all orders together and place a "group buy" when a 100+ cover order is attained. Contact us at info@gsgrowers.com for more information.
Once your covers are purchased, the only things that you'll want to supply are a) a 3/4" x 5' 6" PVC center post w/ T cap (per tree), 2) a 1/2" x 3' rebar center post (per tree), and c) about 400' of twine/baling string (per 30 trees). All of these items are available at our local Home Depot (or from your bales of hay :-) GSG will provide you with the exact items to get when your freeze protection covers are purchased. Perfect!
Note: If you just planted 2'-3' tall olives trees this year (Y2013/Y2014) and need the smaller burlap freeze protection bags and rods (i.e. recommended for smaller trees), please email us at info@gsgrowers.com with your request. We'll try to get some for you for including the deer ring mounting rods.
H) Local Seminars and Workshops. GSG seminars are informal "presentations" designed to provide you with an overview of the olive tree planting process, costs associated with planting olive trees, and the cost-saving benefits of planting olive trees on your property. GSG seminars are approximately (1) hour in length and are a "must see" for folks evaluating "the olive tree planting decision". Seminars generally cost $20 per person (pre-paid) or $25 at the door (if seats remain).
Our next "Seminar" has not been scheduled yet. If you would like to be invited to our next Seminar, please click on the "About Us / News" tab (upper left)
GSG's workshops are "hands-on" events that will teach you how to make mole/vole/gopher baskets, prepare your soil for planting olive trees, learn about the irrigation/watering requirements for olive trees, and more... Workshops are perfect for "hands-on" learning once you've made the decision to become an olive tree farmer. Prices vary for the workshops as appropriate supplies need to be purchased in advance, but are generally in the $30-$35 p/person range. Attendance is limited to 20 persons.
Our next "Workshop" has not been scheduled yet.
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I) Olive Tree Small Farm Tour. If you are interested attending a 30 minute tour of the Greenstone Grower's olive orchard, the cost is $65 for one (1) person, $95 for two (2) persons, and $125 for three (3) persons. Your tour will include an up-close viewing of our olive orchard, irrigation system (i.e. lines, valves, drip system, pressure regulators, filters, etc), olive tree setting, mole/vole/gopher baskets, soil preparation, deer fencing, and more... It's a very worthwhile visit if you're a "do it yourselfer". Your tour guide will provide you with some tips and tricks that will surely make preparing and planting your small farm olive orchard much easier. That's a 50% Savings off our traditional $250 p/hr (non-subsidized) consulting rate.
To purchase your Olive Tree Small Farm Tour please click on the PayPal button below and select the number of attendees. Then proceed to Check Out. You will be sent a confirmation email by PayPal. A GSG representative will contact you within 24 hours during normal business hours (M-F, 9am-5pm PST, USA) to schedule your tour.
Note: A PayPal account is not needed to purchase these Greenstone Growers services. PayPal's "Guest Option" will allow you to use your VISA, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express card to purchase these services.
J) Email the OTT/CO-OP. If you would like to have Greenstone Growers (GSG) send a pre-approved email to the members of the OTT/CO-OP we would be glad to do that for you. The cost is $1 per email address sent as a bcc email (i.e. since all member names are treated as Confidential) to the OTT/CO-OP members. For example, if you want to have GSG send an email to 100 members of the OTT/CO-OP the price would be $100. Note: OTT/CO-OP members that contribute $50 or more annually to www.FixEIDsBoard.com get a 25% discount on these email rates (i.e. $0.75 per email address sent). The prices above include a free (2nd) follow-up email sent to the same pre-purchased set of email addresses as a Reminder email. Your free follow-up email will be sent approximately 1 week after GSG sends your initial email to the OTT/CO-OP.
For more information, please contact us at info@gsgrowers.com
Note: Greenstone Growers' email lists are Confidential and will not be provided to any 3rd party.
Happy Growing! ™
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Intelligent Green Solutions! ™