botanicolor

the ethnobotanic
of fibres and dyes

by luminousgreen


Natural Fibers

Natural Dyes

a brief history
indigo blue
indigo extraction
indigo plants
indigo dyeing
dyeing yellow
yellow dyes
dyeing red
red roots
red insects
dyeing green
bark browns
dyeing black
soap and soda
alum, iron, dung

Sources - Quellen
dyeplants giving yellow


Reseda luteola

Reseda luteola L.
Resedaceae
Weld

Weld is a biennial herb which grows wild from southern Europe to Central Asia. it grows a rosette in the first year and a tall flower stand the following summer. It is found on fallow land and by the wayside throughout the Mediterrannean. the entire plant yeilds a fine, bright yellow dye which can be very fast to light and to washing. although seeds of this species have been found in archaeologicval excavations in Swiss dating much earlier, the use of Reseda as a dyeplant is first recorded in the late Roman period.



Datisca cannabina L.
Datiscaceae
False hemp

this imposing perennial grows from Kreta and Cypress, through Turkey to the Himalaya and Central Asia. it was much grown in India, later in Italy and the South of France. Datisca is dioicus, having male and female plants and reaches more than 1.5 meter. the dyestuff is found in all parts of the plant and is special in that it is one of very few dyes which can be applied to fibres without any mineral fixatives and still produce a fast color. Datisca is particularly suited to coloring cotton.

Datisca cannabina


Anthemis tinctoria

Anthemis tinctoria L.
Asteraceae
dyer's chamomile

Dyer's chamomile is found throughout middle Europe, the Mediterrannean, Turkey to Iran. it grows by paths and in rocky soil, often it can be found growing near to castles and around villages where dyeing once took place. the dye is extracted from the floweers and twigs. also known ad hounds chamomile, this plant provides a rich, warm yellow, much used in Turkish tapestries.



notable is the yellow called Osage Orange. this is one of very few fast dyes which is found in the heartwood of a tree, Maclura pomifera.



Coreopsis tinctoria

Coreopsis tinctoria Nutt.
Asteraceae
dyer's coreopsis

the annual herb, Coreopsis tinctoria originates in North America. its glowing yello-orange flowers give a brilliant and relatively fast tone. this dye was previously used in industrial textileprinting but is perhaps more useful for colorung silks.