Clove
Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. & L.M.Perry
Clove (Syzygium aromaticum) is the dried flower bud of a myrtle-family tree, with a warm, intense aroma and pungent taste; a prized culinary spice, it yields eugenol essential oil used in medicine and dentistry, and in traditional medicine it warms the digestion and eases pain.
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Dried clove budsOverview
Clove is an evergreen tree 8–12 m tall with a narrow crown; its opposite oval leaves are glossy above and dotted with oil glands. Small pinkish-white flowers grow in terminal clusters; the buds are picked just before opening and dried into 'cloves' — each a tubular calyx with four unopened petals and a rounded tip like a small nail, dark reddish-brown in colour.
The tree originated in the Maluku Islands (Indonesia) and was historically one of the most valuable spices; it is grown in Indonesia, India, Madagascar, Tanzania and a few sites in Vietnam. Cloves flavour cakes, stews, mulled wine and curries; their eugenol-rich oil is antiseptic and anaesthetic, used in dentistry and pharmaceuticals, and traditional medicine regards cloves as pungent and warming, relieving cold and pain.
Distribution & origin
Share of recorded occurrences by region- Indonesia35%
- Madagascar25%
- India and others40%
Chemical composition
Relative content in agarwood resin- EugenolAnaesthetic, antibacterial50%
- Acetyl eugenolSecondary oil25%
- TanninsAstringent25%
Uses
- Spice for cakes, stews, curries and mulled wine
- Eugenol oil for medicine and dentistry
- Traditional medicine: warming, pain-relieving
Properties
- Taste
- Warm, intense, numbing-pungent
- Use
- Spice, medicine, dentistry
Habitat & conservation
Humid tropical coastal areas with even rainfall; deep, well-drained soil.
Conservation
Cultivated in many regions; not seriously threatened.
References
- 1Kew Science – Plants of the World Online: Syzygium aromaticum — Kew (Plants of the World Online), 2026
- 2Wikipedia – Clove — Wikipedia, 2026