Thank you for this informative article, Carol! I didn't realize the clove was an immature flower. I can only imagine how wonderful the plant smells!
How nice to be able to grow it!
We keep clove oil in the house to relieve pains, applied to the area. If you've ever had an ingrown toenail, like my poor hubby, it works great to numb the area long enough to remove it!!
As a child, mom would give us a clove for a toothache. She would "make" us bite on the clove where the tooth ached. It always worked.
My dear friend in Sweden makes an infused alcohol that includes cloves and is really used for medicinal purposes
such as inflamation and arthritis pain.