Ronald Caudle, age 13, of Winston‑Salem, N. C., for his question:

To what plant family does the olive belong?

The family name is oleaceae and all of its members are trees or shrubs. The most important to us is the olive tree. Its fruit yields rich oils for cooking and salad dressings, Olive oil is also used in soap making and green and ripe olives are served as appetizers.

Other members of the oleaceae family are more glamorous than the evergreen olive tree. They are the lilacs, the jasmines and the sweet smelling syringas, or mock orange blossoms. The leafy privet shrubs used to make thick hedges are also oleaceae cousins, as are the dainty ash trees.