Natural Dyes - The Top 3 European Dye Plants

For thousands of years, the three main European dyeflower spikes are the origin of this plant's other name
plants were, and still are, woad, weld and madder. Bluedyer's rocket and they attract bumble bees and other
can be extracted from fresh woad leaves whilst theinsects. Start harvesting the leaves and flower stalks
flower spikes and leaves of weld yield neon yellowfrom July onwards, whilst the plant is flowering but is
and the fleshy roots of madder produce a brick red.still green. Weld dye usually produces an instant neon
Various shades of green can be obtained byyellow but that depends on the chemical composition
over-dyeing woad and weld, whilst purples and brownsof the water used in the dye pot. If your yellow turns
result from over-dyeing woad and madder and it is noout dull, the addition of a pinch of calcium carbonate
surprise that weld over-dyed with madder produces(chalk) can brighten up the colour dramatically.
orange. All these colours are light and wash fast.Madder (Rubia tinctoria) Madder produces one of the
Woad (Isatis tinctoria) Woad is native to the Middlemost light-fast of natural dyes and has been in use for
East and the Mediterranean from which it spread intothousands of years. Archaeologists found traces of
Europe and where it has been in use as a dye plantmadder dye in linen in Tutankhamen's tomb and in
since Neolithic times. Textiles dyed with woad werewool discovered in Viking burial grounds. Madder is a
found in Viking ship burials like the Oseberg ship inlong lived perennial of the family Rubiaceae, the same
Norway and the Celtic chieftains graves in Hallstatt,family as coffee and gardenia. The fleshy swollen
Austria. The famous Bayeux tapestry has severalmadder roots produce a red dye which is sensitive to
shades of blue dyed with woad. Woad is a brassicatemperature and to the mineral content of the water.
and therefore closely related to broccoli and cabbage.You need to be patient if you want to harvest your
In the first year, it forms a low-growing cluster of darkown madder, as the roots take three years to grow
blue-green leaves which resemble spinach. The yellowto a reasonable thickness. After you have waited that
flowers, which appear in May, have a wonderfullong, you will feel like you are digging up buried treasure.
fragrance and insects love them, whilst the blackHowever, if you are in a hurry, using madder extract
seeds are winged, resembling small tongues. Woad iswill speed up the process enormously.
a biennial plant and grows for two years before dyingWhat is in it for me? Learning more about dye plants
down. The leaves are harvested for dye production inwill help you better appreciate fragments of textiles in
the first year only, because they have little or no colourmuseums, as well as medieval tapestries and
when they reach the second year. Extracting thecostumes. When you look at famous paintings you will
famous blue pigment is a long but exciting processstart to notice the colours of people's clothes and think
which must have looked akin to magic in the past.about the dyes used to produce them. Recreating an
Weld (Reseda luteola) Weld is a non-invasive andancient technique, like dyeing wool with traditional
attractive plant which can grow wild on waste ground,natural dyes, forges a bond between you and the
but would not look out of place in the back garden. It isartisans of the past. You will find great satisfaction in
a biennial of the family Resedaceae, and belongs toknitting and wearing a scarf dyed with woad, weld and
the same genus as the mignonette. Weld can grow upmadder, the same colours used by pharaohs, Celts,
to five feet in height and the long spikes with small paleVikings and medieval kings and queens.
yellow flowers start appearing in early June. The