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CLOVES 



red. Its upper edges are cut into four short teeth, and it holds 

 a small, f oui -petalled, pale-yellow flower, which in the bud 

 is a tiny yellow ball, for the petals lap over one another and 

 enclose the rest of the flower. The fruit is like a small purple 

 plum, but the seed fills up all the interior, and the outer cover- 

 ing is thin. 



When the calyx is red, and before the petals have opened, 

 the crop is harvested. In Zanzibar each clove is picked by 

 hand, movable stages being erected to enable the gatherers 

 to reach the upper branches, but the more usual method 



is to shake, or beat, the trees, 

 when the cloves fall readily to 

 the ground. They are spread 

 out in the sun to dry, and during 

 the process of drying change 

 from bright red to dark brown. 

 Their pleasant flavour has 

 always caused them to be used 

 in large quantities in cookery, 

 and their popularity is still very 

 great. Oil of Cloves is a pale 

 yellow oil used in soap-making 

 and perfumery. 



Sources of Supply. To the 

 east of Celebes, in latitude 



0.28 N., lie five little islets, which in former days were known 

 as the Moluccas or Clove Islands ; they are regarded as the 

 original home of the clove-tree, but, when the Dutch took the 

 islands from the Portuguese, they compelled the inhabitants 

 to destroy their trees, so that the Dutch plantations in Am- 

 boyna and Banda might have a monopoly of the trade in 

 cloves. Nevertheless, the cultivation of the tree spread, and 

 it now flourishes in most of the East Indian Islands. 



In 1770 the French introduced the clove-tree into their 

 Island of Reunion, and from there its cultivation spread to 



CLOVE PLANT 



