Frequently Asked Questions
Understanding Abandoned Grove
What is Abandoned Grove?
Abandoned Grove restores abandoned olive groves and produces exceptional extra virgin olive oil within the natural limits of land and season.
We work where quality, land stewardship, and community intersect. Exceptional extra virgin olive oil is the vehicle that makes restoration, biodiversity, and long-term care visible and sustainable.
What am I actually receiving when I join?
Participation in Abandoned Grove begins with Root Membership, which connects you to the life of the groves.
You may then choose to extend that relationship through guardianship, caring for one or more rescued olive trees within our restored Tuscan groves.
Guardians share in the harvest their trees help produce and remain connected to the seasonal work that sustains the landscape.
This is not symbolic participation. It is participation in the real care of real trees.
Why does Abandoned Grove work through membership and guardianship instead of selling olive oil directly?
Traditional olive oil is often sold as a commodity.
Abandoned Grove operates differently. Each bottle is tied to the care of real trees in real groves.
Membership and guardianship create the structure that allows us to:
- care for groves year-round
- work within biological limits
- maintain full traceability
- support farmers, artisans, and local communities
When every tree is under care, access naturally closes.
Do you sell olive oil directly?
No.
Abandoned Grove has never sold olive oil in stores or through third-party platforms. Every bottle is tied to membership and the care of real trees in real groves.
This model protects quality, traceability, and the integrity of the land.
Where are your groves located?
Our groves are located in the hills surrounding Florence, Italy, approximately 3–5 km from the city center. Additional groves may be restored in other regions in the future, but only where long-term stewardship and restoration capacity can be fully guaranteed.
Membership & Guardianship
Why is membership required?
Membership sustains the entire system.
It allows us to:
- care for groves year-round
- protect quality and traceability
- work within biological limits
- support farmers, artisans, and local communities
Once all trees in a grove are under care, enrollment closes.
Is this a subscription?
Not in the conventional sense.
Membership renews annually to maintain continuity of care, but it is tied to real trees and real seasons, not consumption or volume.
You are notified before renewal and may choose not to continue.
What is Root Membership?
Root Membership is the foundation layer that sustains the system.
It provides:
- seasonal updates from the groves
- eligibility for reserve oils when available
- invitations to gatherings and experiences
- ongoing connection to the work
Root Membership may exist on its own or be included with guardianship.
What is guardianship?
Guardianship is the active responsibility of caring for one or more rescued olive trees.
Guardianship:
- includes Root Membership
- renews annually
- does not confer ownership
- does not guarantee harvest in any given year
Oil flows from care, not entitlement.
What guardianship options exist?
- Guard a Tree - one rescued olive tree
- Guard a Family of Trees - four rescued olive trees
- Grove Custodian - long-term responsibility for many trees, arranged through conversation
All guardianships operate within the same principles of care and restraint.
Can I join at any time?
Yes, while trees remain available.
When all trees in active groves are under care, participation pauses until additional groves are restored.
Can I choose the grove or tree assigned to me?
No. Each guardianship is assigned to the next available tree within one of our restored Tuscan groves.
Because every grove has natural limits, placement follows where care is most needed rather than personal selection.
Can I add more trees later?
Sometimes.
Eligibility to expand guardianship may be offered over time as new groves are restored or capacity allows.
Additional responsibility grows through relationship and availability, never automatically.
What happens if I don’t renew?
If membership or guardianship ends:
- tree care returns to the community system
- harvest access pauses
- no future yield is guaranteed
Continuity of care matters more than urgency.
Trees & Harvest
Do I keep the same tree each year?
Yes, as long as guardianship remains active.
Each tree is geo-tagged, photographed, and tracked within its grove.
How much oil does a tree produce?
On average, a traditional Tuscan olive tree yields approximately two bottles of extra virgin olive oil per harvest.
Production varies by season and tree health. The system is designed to respect this biological reality without pushing trees beyond their limits.
What happens if my tree produces less oil than expected?
Oil is produced by groves, not individual trees.
Guardians receive oil exclusively from the grove they support. No outside olives are sourced and no external blending occurs.
If a specific tree produces less in a given season, allocations are balanced within the same grove or through the Community Reserve.
When do I receive my olive oil?
Shipping follows the rhythm of the harvest.
- Tree & Family Guardianships: early in the new year after harvest and testing
- Founder’s Reserve: typically late November or early December
- Community Reserve: launching in 2026 with limited availability throughout the year
How is the olive oil shipped?
We handle the oil directly from the groves to your table.
To preserve freshness and protect the integrity of the oil, shipments are air transported whenever possible. While more costly, air shipping significantly reduces transit time and minimizes temperature fluctuations that can compromise olive oil during long journeys.
Exceptional olive oil can easily lose its character if it spends weeks moving through conventional supply chains. Our goal is to ensure the oil arrives as close as possible to how it tasted at the mill.
Why are shipments consolidated?
To reduce environmental impact and unnecessary transport, shipments are consolidated whenever possible.
Rather than sending many small packages throughout the year, oil is typically shipped in coordinated moments following the harvest. This approach allows us to move oil efficiently while reducing packaging and transportation footprint.
Do you ship internationally?
Yes. We currently ship across:
- the United States
- Canada
- the United Kingdom
- the European Union
Shipping availability may expand as the community grows.
How fresh is the olive oil when I receive it?
Olive oil is at its best when it is fresh, but freshness alone does not determine quality.
Exceptional extra virgin olive oil begins with healthy fruit. Harvesting damaged or fermented olives will never produce great oil, no matter how fresh or quickly it is processed. Much of the work in our groves focuses on ensuring the fruit arrives at the mill in optimal condition.
After extraction, the oil is double-filtered, laboratory tested, and stored in stainless steel tanks under nitrogen in temperature-controlled environments. This protects it from oxygen, light, and temperature fluctuations.
The oil is bottled only when it is ready to ship, not months in advance. From the moment the oil leaves the tank to the moment it reaches your table, the journey typically takes about one week.
What happens if the harvest is small?
Nature determines yield.
To maintain continuity, a portion of each harvest is set aside in the Community Reserve, which helps support members during lean seasons.
We never source olives or oil from outside producers to compensate.
What happens if a grove experiences a difficult season?
Olive agriculture is shaped by weather, climate, and biological cycles.
To protect continuity across seasons:
- Production is balanced within the same grove
- The Community Reserve helps absorb variability
- No external olives or oils are introduced
The system is designed to respect the realities of agriculture while maintaining integrity.
Can I transfer my guardianship to someone else?
Yes.
Guardianship can be transferred if you wish to pass the tree to a family member or another person. Our team can assist with updating the account connected to that tree.
Oil Expressions
What is One Tree One Bottle?
One Tree One Bottle is the grove-specific oil shared through guardianship.
Each tree typically yields two bottles per harvest, both shared with the guardian. The name reflects the origin of the idea, not a literal division of fruit.
What is the Community Reserve?
The Community Reserve is a communal portion of each harvest set aside to stabilize access across seasons.
It helps:
- support continuity during difficult harvest years
- welcome new members
- hedge natural variability
It will launch in 2026 and be available to active members when supply allows.
What is Founder’s Reserve?
Founder’s Reserve is an early-harvest expression curated annually by Fil Bucchino.
It is:
- seasonal
- limited
- available first to members
- typically offered by the case
Each edition reflects the character of a specific harvest season.
Gifting
Can I gift a tree?
Yes.
Gifting a rescued olive tree includes:
- one year of guardianship
- one year of Root Membership for the recipient
- a geo-tagged, photographed tree
- a digital certificate
- a handcrafted olive wood nameplate
- two bottles of extra virgin olive oil after harvest
Can gifts be personalized or scheduled?
Yes.
You may include a personal message and select the day the gift is revealed.
What happens at the end of the gift year?
At the end of the year:
- the recipient may renew guardianship
- the relationship may conclude naturally
If not renewed, the tree returns to community care.
What if the recipient is already a member?
The gifted tree is simply added to their account for that harvest year without affecting their existing membership.
Grove Custodianship
What is Grove Custodianship?
Grove Custodianship is a deeper form of participation in the restoration of abandoned olive groves.
Custodians care for many trees — typically twenty or more — helping sustain entire landscapes while sharing in the harvest those trees produce.
Custodianship is not ownership and is arranged privately through conversation.
Who is Grove Custodianship for?
Grove Custodianship is typically undertaken by individuals, families, chefs, or organizations seeking to support restoration at a larger scale.
It reflects long-term alignment with the work of land stewardship.
What does Custodianship include?
Custodians may receive:
- harvest from the trees they sustain
- direct seasonal dialogue with the Abandoned Grove team
- invitations to harvest experiences and visits to the groves
- recognition within the landscape
These are outcomes of responsibility, not incentives.
Events & Visits
Do members receive invitations to events?
Yes.
Members are notified first about:
- tastings
- intimate dinners
- cultural gatherings
- harvest travel
These moments emerge from the work and are offered selectively.
Can members visit the groves?
Yes, though visits are intentionally limited.
The groves are working agricultural landscapes, and most of the year our focus remains on the care of the trees.
Throughout the season we host small gatherings, harvest experiences, and occasional visits for members and custodians. These moments allow people to see the work on the land and experience the harvest firsthand.
When timing allows, additional visits may be arranged by contacting us.
Quality & Integrity
Is your olive oil organic?
Our practices exceed many organic standards, focusing on biodiversity, soil health, and regenerative agriculture.
While not all groves carry organic certification, every harvest undergoes rigorous multi-residue testing, consistently returning zero detectable residues.
Is the oil filtered?
Yes.
All oils are double-filtered immediately after extraction to ensure stability, clarity, and longevity without compromising aroma or flavor.
How should I store the oil?
Store the bottle in a cool, dark place away from heat and direct light.
Always reseal the bottle after use.
For the best sensory experience, we recommend enjoying the oil within four to six weeks of opening.
What happens if a bottle arrives damaged?
If a bottle is damaged during shipping, please contact us and we will make it right.
Because each oil is produced in limited quantities tied to specific groves and harvests, we will always make our best effort to replace the bottle with oil from the same grove and season.
If that is not possible, we will provide a replacement from either the Founder’s Reserve or the Community Reserve, ensuring the integrity and quality of what you receive.
Contact
How can I reach you?
For general questions, membership support, or collaboration inquiries:
We read every message and respond thoughtfully.
Every grove has a natural limit. When every tree is under care, access closes until another grove is restored.
