The tree is native to the Moluccas, or Spice Islands, of Indonesia and is principally cultivated there and in the West Indies.
The spice nutmeg has a distinctive pungent fragrance and a warm slightly sweet taste; it is used to flavour many kinds of baked goods, confections, puddings, potatoes, meats, sausages, sauces, vegetables, and such beverages as eggnog.
The fleshy arils surrounding the nutmeg seed are the source of the spice mace.
Dried nutmegs are grayish brown ovals with furrowed surfaces.
