Any use for clove studded Oranges?

Careful_with_that_Axe

Have done some oranges studded with cloves this year. The smell is awesome.
Will there be any use for them when they are like me - old and wrinkly?
Could I put them in a clothes cupboard, say, as a sort of air freshner?

mi_jardin

I put mine in cupboards and they are all years old. I even have one in the towel basket in the bathroom. You could put them in a bowl for decoration, maybe with some pine cones too.

meritaten

yes - I like to put them in the airing cupboard, I think I read somewhere that it discourages moths.
I love the smell too!

MissShoes

oooh lovely, I'm going to put this on my list of things to do!

doodoot

I made one of theses at school when I was 10 years old, and my mum found it in a box a couple of years ago and it was still smelly...26 years on! :eek:

Silly moo threw it away though.

They are great in airing cupboards, wardrobes and I've heard of people tying them to the handles of their wheelie bins and popping a couple inside to keep the smells down.

*runs off to write 'cloves' on the shopping list*

ScarletRaven

This may be a really stupid question, but how do the oranges not go rotten?

Libretia*

I still have one my daughter made about 10 years ago. They are great when hung in the wardrobe.

meritaten

ScarletRaven wrote: »

This may be a really stupid question, but how do the oranges not go rotten?

No thats a very intelligent question!
once you have studded your orange with the cloves (as many as you can get on there - and a good tip is to make holes with a cocktail stick before pushing the cloves in) you then dry the orange!
I simply put them on a radiator in the dining room - but you can put them in the airing cupboard or any warm dry place. they take a good couple of weeks to dry properly and they smell amazing all the time! you will then find they have shrunk a good bit and the cloves are then held in tightly!

Mrs_Chip

Here's a link showing how they are made - used to make them years ago, think I will have to make them again!

http://www.herbsociety.org.uk/schools/activities/pomander.htm

lizzyb1812

ScarletRaven wrote: »

This may be a really stupid question, but how do the oranges not go rotten?

Well, in my dad's case, he did his National Service back in the 50's in Egypt. He had a couple of oranges in his kit bag when he came back - one of which had completely dried out in the heat. And I've still got it 59 years later, complete with dent from being in the kit bag

They dry out really easily and the pomander would be put in the wardrobe to sweeten clothes - no washing machines then - or held to the nose to ward off smells/disease - they were the deodorants of the day.

ScarletRaven

Thanks so much for the tips guys Can't believe I didn't realise you dry them out, so silly of me lol. Wanted to make one of these for years, think I'll finally give it a go now! I do a lot of Asian cooking so I've always got lots of cloves about, now just need an orange...