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Natural Dye Plants Create Vibrant Colors
Below are many of the natural dye plants of historical use in the fiber arts. The majority of these plants are not very important as dyes, and could probably not now be collected in sufficient quantities. Some however, are important, such as woad, weld, heather, walnut, alder, oak and some lichens. If you wish to try dyeing a local plant, try to find it on a list such as this one to avoid disappointment. Not all plants, regardless of their beauty, make good dye material. Also be aware that some plants, such as some lichens are environmentally protected.
The yellow dyes are most plentiful and many of these are good fast colours. Madder is the only reliable red dye among plants. Most of the dye plants require a preparation of the material to be dyed, with alum, or some other mordant, but a few, such as Barbary and some of the lichens, are substantive dyes, and require no mordant.
See Natural Dye Mordants
PLANTS WHICH DYE RED
Birch (Betula alba) Fresh inner bark
Bed-straw (Gallium boreale) Roots
Common Sorrel (Rumex acetosa) Roots
Dyer's Woodruff (Asperula tinctoria) Roots
Evergreen Alkanet (Anchusa sempervirens)
Gromwell (Lithospermum arvense)
Lady's Bedstraw (Gallium verum) Roots
Marsh Potentil (Potentilla Comarum) Roots
Madder (Rubia Tinctorum) Roots
Potentil (Potentilla Tormentilla) Roots
See more information on the Red Dyes - Madder,
Cochineal, Kermes and Brazilwood
NATURAL DYE PLANTS FOR BLUE
Devil's Bit (Scabiosa succisa) Leaves prepared like woad
Dog's Mercury (Mercurialis perennis)
Elder (Sambucus nigra) Berries
Indigo (Indigofera tintoria)
Privet (Ligustrum vulgare) Berries with alum and salt
Red bearberry (Arctostaphylos Uva-Ursi)
Sloe (Prunus communis) Fruit
Whortleberry or Blaeberry (Vaccinium Myrtillus) Berries
Woad (Isatis tinctoria)
Yellow Iris (Iris Pseudacorus) Roots
More information on the Blue Dyes - Indigo,
Woad and Logwood
PLANTS THAT DYE YELLOW
Agrimony (Agrimonia Eupatoria)
Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) Fresh inner bark
Barberry (Berberis vulgaris) Stem and root
Birch. Leaves
Bog Asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum)
Bog Myrtle or Sweet Gale (Myrica Gale)
Bracken (Pteris aquilina) Roots, also young tops
Bramble (Rubus fructicosus)
Broom (Sarothammus Scoparius)
Buckthorn (Rhamnus frangula and R. cathartica) Berries and Bark
Common dock (Rumex obtusifolius) Root
Crab Apple (Pyrus Malus) Fresh inner bark
Dyer's Greenwood (Genista tinctoria) Young shoots and leaves
Gorse (Ulex Europæus) Bark, flowers and young shoots
Heath (Erica vulgaris) With Alum
Hedge stachys (Stachys palustris)
Hop (Humulus lupulus)
Hornbeam (Carpinus Betulus) Bark
Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis Vulnararia)
Ling (Caluna vulgaris)
Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris)
Marsh potentil (Potentilla Comarum)
Meadow Rue (Thalictrum flavum)
Nettle (Urtica) With Alum
Pear, Leaves
Plum
Polygonum Hydropiper
Polygonum Persecaria
Poplar, Leaves
Privet (Ligustrum vulgare) Leaves
St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum)
Sawwort (Serratula tinctoria)
Spindle tree (Euonymus Europæus)
Stinking Willy, or Ragweed (Senecio Jacobæa)
Sundew (Drosera)
Teasel (Dipsacus Sylvestris)
Way-faring tree (Viburnum lantana) Leaves
Weld (Reseda luteola)
Willow, Leaves
Yellow Camomile (Anthemis tinctoria)
Yellow Centaury (Chlora perfoliata)
Yellow Corydal (Corydalis lutea)
NATURAL DYE PLANTS FOR GREEN
Elder (Sambucus nigra) Leaves with alum
Flowering reed (Phragmites communis) Flowering tops, with iron
Larch. Bark, with alum
Lily of the valley (Convalaria majalis) Leaves
Nettle (Urtica dioica and U. Urens)
Privet (Ligustrum vulgare) Berries and leaves, with alum
PLANTS THAT DYE BROWN
Alder (Alnus glutinosa) Bark
Birch (Betula alba) Bark
Hop (Humulus lupulus) Stalks give a brownish red colour
Onion, Skins
Larch, Pine needles, collected in Autumn
Oak (Quercus Robur) Bark
Red currants, with alum
Walnut, Root and green husks of nut
Water Lily (Nymphæa alba) Root
Whortleberry (Vaccinium Myrtillus) Young shoots, with nut galls
Dulse (Seaweed)
Lichens
NATURAL DYE PLANTS FOR PURPLE
Byrony (Byronia dioica) Berries
Damson, Fruit, with alum
Dandelion (Taraxacum Dens-leonis) Roots
Danewort (Sambucus Ebulus) Berries
Deadly nightshade (Atropa Belladonna)
Elder (Sambucus nigra) Berries, with alum, a violet; with alum and salt, a lilac colour
Sundew (Drosera)
Whortleberry or blaeberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) It contains a blue or purple dye which will dye wool and silk without mordant
NATURAL DYE PLANTS FOR BLACK
Alder (Alnus glutinosa) Bark, with iron
Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) Young shoots, with salts of iron
Dock (Rumex) Root
Elder (Sambucus nigra) Bark, with iron
Iris (Iris Pseudacorus) Root
Meadowsweet (Spirea Ulmaria)
Oak, Bark and acorns
Continue from Natural Dye Plants to Natural Dye Mordants
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