Green Gold of The East:

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Green Gold of The East A light Review of
Syzygium aromaticum By Tumbur Hutabarat
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HISTORY TAXONOMY ECOLOGY AND HABITAT BUDS
FEATURE COMPOSITION TOXICITY COMPOSITION USAGES PR
ODUCTION AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE THE LAST PART OF
SWOT ANALYSIS
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Cloves Come Into Our Lives
220 206 BC,. In Han period, the great Emperor
of China recommended every court official to chew
on cloves before consulting with or addressing
the Emperor to make sure that his breath was
clean
176 AD, Cloves were imported into Alexandria from
the East
335 AD 4th Century, Constantine the Great sent
45 kilograms of cloves to Saint Sylvester I,
neatly packed in jars. Cloves were well known in
the Mediterainia.
8th Century, Cloves became an expensive commodity
in Europe
During the ninth century at the wealthy monastery
of Sankt Gallen in Switzerland, monks sprinkled
cloves on their fasting fish. In 973, an Arab
traveler, Ibn Jaqub found the burghers of Mainz
seasoning their meals with cloves.
During the twelfth century, Saint Hildegard
discussed cloves in her book about medicinal
plants.
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1511, Francisco Serrao reached the Moluccas and
settled in the clove island of Ternate. The
Portuguese were quick to out compete the Arab
spice merchants and establish their own monopoly
using fortified trading posts, treaties with
island rulers and naval bases.
In sixteenth century, Portugal was conquered by
Spain and Dutch drove out Portuguese from
Moluccas and then a new imperialism based on
cloves was started in the Island. Cornelius van
Houten returned in 1597 to Amsterdam with huge
cargo of spices and more than twenty ships full
of cloves arrived in the following year.
Dutch only allowed certain areas for growing the
clove trees while plantation sites cultivating
clove trees but considered difficult to control
were burnt down. At least 60,000 natives were
killed during acquisition of clove plantation in
Molucca (Swahn, 1991).
In 1773, Piere Poivre managed to smuggle sixty
clove plants with fast sail through the isle of
Jibby of the Moluccas to Mauritius. Two of the
stolen trees bore fruit in 1775. Plants were
taken to Cayenne about 1789 from whence they were
introduced into Dominica, Matinique and other
West Indian islands.
In 1820s, Smith sent a total 55,265 plants to
Penang and extensive plantations were made in
Penang, Singapore and Malacca. British introduced
the clove plants to some extent in Sri Lanka,
India, and Tahiti after wards
At the same token Sultan Said bin Sultan forced
plantation owners to plant clove trees under
threat of confiscation of their land and more of
the area of Zanzibar and Pemba was planted with
clove trees by 1820s (Purseglove, 1968).
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Taxonomy
Vernacular cloves (Eng.), clou de girofle (Fr),
cengkeh (Ind.), klabong pako (The Phil.),
lay-hnyin (Bur.), khan phluu (Camb.), dinh
huwowng (Viet.), dok chan (Laos), kruidnagel
(Dutch), nelke (German), lavang (Gujarati).
Division Magnoliophyta
Class Magnoliopsida
Order Myrtales
Family Myrtaceae
Genus Syzygium (Eugenia)
Species aromaticum
Obscure organo-graphical differences between
Eugenia and Syzygium but anatomically, the
differences are quite apparent.
Syzygium
Eugenia
Anatomic Features
Position of the Maturation flowers on
inflorescence
Predominantly Lateral Centripetal
Predominantly terminal Centrifugal
Usually panicles or cymes
Usually racemes
Structure of the inflorescence
Usually distinctly rough
Discreteness of the cotyledon surface of the seed
coat
Usually fused smooth
Transeptal frequently to other carpellary bundles
Axile, not united with other carpellary Bunddles.
Pathway of vascular supply to ovules connection
of the dorsal bundles
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Ecology and Habitat
Indigenous to Ternate, Tidore, Mutyr, Makyan and
Bachian of the Moluccas.
Best with insular, maritime climates in the
tropics at low altitudes.
Annual rainfall is 218 355 cm and temperatures
24 33?C.
The tree is slender and can reach up to 15 m
tall, conical when young, later becoming
cylindrical, in cultivation usually smaller and
branched from the base.
Seedlings are raised immediately after harvesting
because the seed may lose its viability within
few weeks.
Clove yields increases until the tree is about 20
years and it will be productive until 80 years.
Flowers are hermaphrodite, with fleshy
hypanthium, reddish in color surmounted by 4
fleshy triangular sepals 4 petals, have numerous
stamens, have ovary embedded in hypanthium and
short style stamens and style fall after
pollination.
Flowers are visited by bees and are probably
cross-pollinated.Seeds are oblong, about 1.5 cm
long, grooved on one one surface.
Flowers are formed twice a year
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Transectional picture of a clove
Note A, Penang clove B, Zanzibar Clove C,
fruit D,stalk, E, clove cut longitudinally F,
transverse section of Hyphantium G, portion of
anthers H, Surface view petals a, stamens ae,
aerenchyma al, anthers love c, columnella cr,
cluster crystal of calcium oxalate e, epidermis
h, hyphanthium o, ovules og, oil gland p,
imbricated petals
The contents of the oil glands are soluble in
alcohol and are blackened by treatment with
alcoholic ferric chloride
Cluster crystals of calcium oxalate occur in many
parenchymatous cells.
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• Chemical Composition of Clove
• volatile oil, 14 to 20
• gallotannic acid, 10 to 30
• oleanolic acid
• vannilin
• eugenin
• extraneous materials

Clove oils are composed of Eugenol (80-95),
eugenyl acetate (1-5) and beta caryophyllene
(4-12).
Clove oils are colorless or slightly yellow
liquid, but when exposed to air and aging, they
become darker.
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Toxicity
Oral administration of both clove oils and
eugenol orally has an LD50 of 3720 and 500 mg per
body weight of tested rats, respectively.
Usage as Flavoring Agents
Food Curry Powder Mix, Seasoning Mix, Pudding
and Tarts, Sousing ham and Herring, Betel and
warm alcoholic drinks.
Cigarette Both dried stems and flower buds are
used for kretek cigarette.
Tooth-paste
Perfume Carriers
Semi Synthetic vanillin
Together with dried orange alternative to
Mothballs and lavender bags
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Usage for Medicinal Purpose
Panacea dental anesthetic, carminative,
vermifuge, emmenagogue, tonic, stomachic,
anti-emetic, anti-nauseant, febrifuge and, when
applied locally, analgesic and anti-rheumatic.
Antiseptic and disinfectant
Temporary dental filling when compounded with
zinc oxide
Dental wash inhibitory to the growth of
Porphyromonas gingivlis and Prevotella intermedia.
Usage for Disinfectant Antifungal Asperggillus
flavus, Aspergillus parasiticus, T. castaneum,
Aspergillus versicolor

• Mice and Rabbits Trials
• Anti cytomegalovirus (CMV)
• Anti-HVS-1

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Usage as souvenirs
Production and International Trade of Cloves
Top 5 Producers Indonesia China India Malaysia Br
azil
Top Four Importers USA Japan European Union
Unit price Stable since 1994 1998, was 0.964
US /Kg
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Threats for the Industry
Pathogens Fungus Valsa eugenia, Psedomonas
syzygii, Phyllosticta syzygium and Guigordia
hevea Virus Cryptosporella eugeniae Insects
Saissetiea eugeniae and Oecopphylla smaragdina

• Actions should be taken
• Wise choice of pesticides and insecticides
• Maintaining genetic diversity of Sygium
  aromaticum
• Biological control based on plant plant pest
  interaction.
• Screening for superior cultivars

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Thank you and It is for you, menu of the The
Day Honey, Whisky, Cloven Ham