Herbs for Dyeing

Woad

• Woad is a perennial herb with a single stem which produces a yellow flower during the second year of growth. The dye from woad came from crushing and drying the plant's leaves and allowing them to ferment. This fermented woad was put into a covered container with very hot water. An alkaline binding agent was added to this solution to produce the dye. Woad dye begins as greenish-yellow but turns blue when exposed to the air.

Madder

• Madder is a native European and Mediterranean perennial herb, which was the source of dye called alizarin. The dye was most commonly red, though the color could vary depending on the mordant, or binding agent, with which the dye solution was mixed. The use of madder dyes go back very far in history. The ancient Egyptians, Indians and Persians all produced it.

Indigo

• Indigo was used as a dye 6000 years ago by the ancient Chinese. Because of its high quality, indigo, which produces an intense blue dye, was an important product in world trade for centuries. Indigo was also an important crop in colonial South Carolina but was replaced by rice which was more profitable. In 1897 a synthetic indigo dye was created.

Achiote

• Achiote is a native South American plant used in food preparation by the ancient Mayans. The plant is valued for a pulp that surrounds its seeds and is used to make a yellow-orange-red dye. This dye colors margarine, cheese, rice and other food products and is common throughout Latin America. In the Philippines, achoite seeds are ground for a condiment.