Latin name: Eugenia caryophyllata
Common name(s): Cloves, Mother Cloves
Clove is a small evergreen tree that is bushy that grows in tropics of Asia and South America. It has branches that ascend with ovate-lanceolate, shiny leathery leaves which are a salmon pink color when they are young. Cloves are harvested in India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Zanzibar.
Clove is part of the Myrtacea. The cloves tree is a very aromatic evergreen that blooms pink-white flowers during the late summer whose petals fall open and have yellow stamens which are followed by very aromatic purple berries.
Clove is an herb that has a mild anesthetic property which comes from the dried under developed flower buds and has been used to treat a toothache. Clove has a moderately strong germicidal property and has been used by dentist to treat root canals because of its anesthetic and germicidal properties. Clove contains an active ingredient called Eugenol which remains one of the major agents for pain relief used by dentist.
The cloves that can be found in the everyday grocery stores in America contain much less strength than the clove found in herbal shops. Clove tea can be used to treat nausea and gas by steeping the buds of clove in boiling water and drinking. Oil of clove is used in China to treat diarrhea and hernia too. Clove is also used to treat vomiting.
Clove is considered by some people to be one of the most powerful germicidal herbs in the herbal kingdom. Clove is safe and effective enough to be used to treat nausea, vomiting and discomfort by women who are pregnant. Clove promotes digestion and nutrition because it increases blood circulation according to ‘Herbal Health Secrets’ by Richard M. Lucas.
Clove is an analgesic, anodyne, anti-emetic, antiseptic, aromatic, astringent, carminative, disinfectant, expectorant, germicide, rubefacient, stimulant, stomachic, tonic and vermifuge. The parts of the evergreen tree that are used for herbal healing are the flower buds, oil and seeds. Cloves oil is extracted from the flower buds, fruit and leaves.
Cloves are used in the make-up of a cigarette in India called kretek. Clove cigarettes have been smoked in many parts of the world but they were outlawed in 2009 in America. Even through you can buy a similar form but are labeled as filtered cigars.
Cloves can be used to treat any and all of the following ailments:
Abdominal pain, athlete’s foot, backache, bad breath, bronchial catarrh, bronchitis, candida, colds, diarrhea, digestion, dizziness, dysentery, dyspepsia, earache, epilepsy, flu, gas, halitosis, hiccups, impotence, improves blood circulation, indigestion, insect bites, intestinal parasites, lovers blood pressure, muscle aches, nausea, pain, palsy, sexual stimulant, spasms, stomach chills, toothache, vomiting and warts.