Cloves are the unripe flower buds (10 - 17 mm long) of the up to 14 m tall clove tree (Syzygium aromaticum) of the Myrtaceae family. The tree is indigenous to the Moluccas in South-East Asia.
cloves are harvested just before they open, then destalked before being sun-dried. In the course of the drying process, they change color from carmine to light to dark brown.