Clove is one of the most priced and expensive spices from the ancient times. It’s native to the Maluku islands or the Moluccas in the Indonesian Archipelago and unknown how and when clove was introduced to Sri Lanka, but it may be that the Arabian traders or colonial rulers brought the plant to the Sri Lanka.

Clove is the dried unopened flower bud of the evergreen tree. The clove tree is a medium sized symmetrically shaped tree with grey bark. It’s also known as “Eugenia Caryophylluss” of the Myrataceae family. A fully grown clove tree is about 15 – 20 meters tall. This plant suits to grows in a humid tropical climate from sea level up to an elevation of about 1000m. Average rainfall of 1750 – 2500 mm and mainly grown in mid country wet zone of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is one of the top exporters of clove to the global markets and provide nearly 8.5% of the global demand. In fact, clove is largely used as dried whole buds. Ground clove is a major ingredient in curry mixtures, add flavours for both sweet and savory foods.