Episode 168: Creating a Positive Atmosphere and Exploring Clove

When I need to focus or concentrate, I tend to diffuse the mint oils with the touch of Vetiver and citrus. For example, some Peppermint, Rosemary, and Spearmint with a bit of Grapefruit oil and a drop of Vetiver.

For a calming atmosphere at night, I like lavender with citrus and a bit of Eucalyptus, or you can use Adaptiv™ or dōTERRA Serenity®. There are so many different combinations, and so it just takes some creativity and some experimentation to find out what you like best and what works best for you.

doTERRA: Scott, thank you so much for being with us today, for teaching us a little bit more about essential oils. We always love to talk with you.

The scent of Clove evokes the warm feeling of Christmas and comforting holiday foods. It’s a spice that has found its way into the tradition of many cultures around the world.

History of Clove

Its source and place of origin were shrouded in mystery until the Portuguese discovered the Moluccas Island or Indonesia in the 16th century.

Originally cloves were grown, or rather grew wild, on the famous Molucca Islands in Indonesia, which became known as the Spice Islands. Vast forests of clove trees flourished on these islands and were encouraged in their abundance by a native custom of planting a clove tree whenever a child was born. It was believed that if the tree flourished, then so would the child.

There’s a Zanzibar saying that goes, “Clove trees will not grow except within sight of the mountains and within smell of the sea.” And the clove tree does flourish in the warm, humid climates of places such as Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Brazil, and Tanzania. Today, in fact, Tanzania alone produces nearly 80% of the world’s cloves.

Harvesting Clove

The clove harvest traditionally consists of a few busy days when the more nimble members of the community head to the treetops, beating the cloves from the branches with sticks. As the cloves shower down, they are gathered in nets and spread out to dry, where they harden and blacken in the tropical sun, taking on the characteristic nail-like appearance that gives the spice its name, from the Latin clavus, or “nail”.

First Records of Clove

Now the first record we have of clove actually comes from a handful of cloves found in a charred ceramic vessel beneath the Syrian desert. In this ancient small town on the banks of the Euphrates River, an individual by the name of Puzurum lost his house to a devastating fire.

In the perspective of overall history, this was an extremely minor event: a new house was built over the ruins of the old, and then another, and many others after that; life went on, and on, and on.

Thousands of years later, a team of archaeologists came to the dusty village that now stands atop the ruins. As they dug through the packed and burned earth that had once been Puzurum’s home, they extracted not only the vessel containing the cloves but also an archive of inscribed clay tablets. By happy accident the blaze that destroyed Puzurum’s house had fired the fragile clay tablets as hard as though they had been baked in a kiln, thereby ensuring their survival over thousands of years. A second fluke was a reference on one the tablets to a local ruler known from other sources, a King Yadihk-Abu. His name dates the blaze, and the cloves, to within a few years of 1721 BC.

To find the earliest written mention of cloves, however, we have to look to the Han dynasty in China in 207 BC. The writings tell how officers of the court were made to hold cloves in their mouth when talking to the king, apparently to ensure the sweetness and acceptability of their breath. Europeans, however, did not experience cloves until about the fourth century, when the spice arrived on the continent via traders as a luxury item.

They were such a luxury item, in fact, that in Britain during the 17th and 18th centuries, cloves were worth at least their weight in gold.

Traditional Uses

Clove has been used in a wide variety of ways throughout history, from cooking, to traditional medicinal practices.

For instance, clove can be used to make a fragrant pomander when combined with an orange. A pomander is a ball made for perfumes and traditionally was often carried with the owner. When given as a gift in Victorian England, such a pomander indicated warmth of feeling.

Clove is also known to possess many properties that make it useful in oral health, and it’s used in various dental creams, toothpastes, mouth washes, and throat sprays.

Traditionally, people have also pressed a clove bud between the jaws, at the site of a tooth that may be bothering them.

Clove has been used traditionally in many healing traditions including Ayurveda, traditional Chinese medicine, and western herbalism. In fact, in Ayurveda, cloves are said to be kaphahar, which means that they have the ability to balance the kapha dosha, one of the three life forces in Ayurvedic tradition.

Whatever way you choose to use Clove, we know that it can quickly become one of your favorites.

Thanks for joining us and congratulations on living a healthier lifestyle with essential oils. If you liked what you heard today, rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen. Also, if you want to try any of the products you learned about, go to doterra.com or find a Wellness Advocate near you to place an order today.