The Palmetto Quarterly Magazine of the Florida Native Plant Society · Vol. 13, No. 3 · Fall Summer 1993

Natural Dyes from Florida Native Plants

by Elizabeth Smith (drawings by the author)

industries using plants, insects, and sea recipes passed down from generation to creatures to color their handicrafts. The generation. Egyptians were known to have used We would all still be wearing the soft another important improvement - a muted colors of natural dyeing if William substance called a mordant that helped Henry Perkins had not been ex- the dye color become permanent. Natural perimenting with coal tar in 1856. From fibers such as wool, silk, and cotton have this he produced aniline, and from aniline the property of holding certain chemicals he produced a lavender dye, a color that called mordants in their fibers, which then created excitement in England and spread form an insoluble compound with the dye to the rest of the Europe and eventually to to improve colorfastness. North America. It was said that Queen Throughout Europe, records reflect Victoria wore a "mauve" (the new color!) that dyeing was mainly a trial-and-error dress at the Great Exhibition of 1862. process, until scientists and publishers Aniline dyes became the standard - the Red maple (Acer rubrum) dyes wool a put together a manual for the dye in- colors were predictable compared to golden tan. dustry. natural dyes, which were often shaped by

environmental factors, and offered a wide The American Indians did not leave written records about the native berries range of colors not obtainable from Use of dyes may have all started and plants they used. We know of some when early men and women noticed the general materials passed down through berry stains on their fingers, and went generations, but little is known of from there to experiment with adding color localized knowledge, especially from the to their daily lives. However it may have east. started, we do know that the first recorded mention of dying and dyeshops appears The North American settlers con- in a Chinese chronology dated 3000 B.C. tinued to use European methods and imported dye products even when they Using natural materials to dye fabrics became quite expensive. There were appealed to me, and I decided to research several efforts to grow dyestuffs in our native plants to learn which berries, colonial America as a commercial crop but leaves, flowers, or barks would yield dyes. they did not succeed. Little is written Being an amateur at both dyeing and about the colonial dye materials and botany, I searched for boods, looking to processes except those based on Rouge plant (Raniva humilis) dyes wool history for related European plants, traditional European methods. Our and silk orange. records of early American settlers, Indians knowledge of early experiments with --- anything that mentioned color from natural sources. native materials comes mainly from native plant material. personal papers, family traditions, and Natural dyeing survived in the rural We know the ancient civilizations in areas of America, but died out for India, Japan, and Egypt had dye commercial use by the end of the 19th century. Germany led the way in the form called copperas and is ferrous porcelain, wooden spoons for stirring and chemical manufacture of dyestuffs from sulphate. In the old days, the iron dye pot lifting, and plastic measuring spoons for aniline until World War 1, when a "dye acted as the mordant! Iron will darken or the mordants. Be sure to keep pots and all famine" spurred America to compete in "sadden" colors, often producing grayer utensils used for dyeing separate from the business of large scale dye manu- or cooler tones. other cooking containers and tell your facture. During the shortage, however, the The recipes say that mordants may be family not to use them for any sort of food use of natural dyes revived for a time, used before, during, or after the dye bath. preparation. Some purists use only then lapsed back into the hands of local To simplify things, I use the mordant distilled water because rain water may craftsmen and artists. directly in the dye bath. The most contain minerals and tap water has One of the reasons natural dyeing has permanent color is achieved with a chemical additives that will affect the survived is the very reason commercial mordant bath before and after. color. I believe early dyers used whatever water was available, and feel that tap dyers have rejected them they are Amounts given for mordants must be water does not add an amount of impossible to standardize. Natural followed carefully. Too much may harden chemicals that would severely distort the dyestuffs produce unique colors that may or streak the cloth; not enough will not colors. vary widely from dye lot to dye lot. Each give a fast color. Generally, I followed a plant has subtle differences - live oak basic recipe – 11/2 teaspoons of alum and If you do the dyeing indoors, be alert twigs from one area may produce a gray 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar to 2 gallons for noxious odors and provide plenty of color, from another area, a rose color. The of water for my base mordant; for the ventilation. Most of the dye baths I tested soil, weather conditions, and other secondary mordant I used iron required about one quart of plant material elements that make up different habitats (copperas), 1/2 teaspoon to 2 gallons of (leaves, flowers, roots, berries, twigs, or will cause variations in the dye color. Add Live oak (Quesrcus virginiana) dyes wool a dusty chopped bark) to 2 gallons of water to dye rosewater. or dark gray, depending on the mordant. to that the miscellaneous lichens, insects, approximately 2 ounces of yarn. These I did find several recipes giving and galls that you may have gathered were simmered together until the color amounts of bark, flowers, and so on, but I with the plants and that color changes was released, from 20 minutes to an hour. decided to follow the basic formula and again. Intensity of color could be regulated by experiment on my own. For specific and adding more dye material or more water, I had decided to limit my experiments to exact recipes (including temperatures), an also by the length of time the fabric or plants, saving the insects and sea excellent book is Dyes From Your Garden fibers are left in the dye bath. Fibers or creatures for hardier experimenters, so the by Bernice Gillette Conner, a recent fabrics should always be wet before next step was to track down the plants softcover publication listing her immersing in the dye bath to enable the and recipes I would need. experiments with many Florida plant color to be absorbed evenly. After amassing a list of the possible materials of exotic and native species. You may want to strain the plant plants native to Florida that had related Some of the basic rules of home dyeing material from the dye bath first. I use a plants mentioned throughout history, or are based on common sense: be aware of colander to strain bark and twigs, and an which seemed to be likely candidates, I any toxic plant materials (use with care or old dishcloth for flowerheads, small was ready to learn how to do the actual not at all); be aware of the poisonous stems, and leaves. Pour the dye bath back process. nature of some mordants (store separately into the pot and add the wet fabric or First, I needed to decide which from food items and label correctly). fibers, continue to simmer gently, never mordants should be used to make the Using a dye recipe is like using any crowding or squeezing. dyes colorfast. Certain mordants work other recipe. A good cook knows to I found most materials took about 30 best on certain materials wool and silk gather equipment and assemble minutes to reach the desired color. Before color best when metallic salts such as ingredients before starting to cook.. Use removing the fabric from the bath, pinch alum, chrome, iron, or tin are used. Cotton non-metallic pots and utensils, as the some of the water out of the fibers; this or vegetable fibers combine best with metals may affect the desired dye color. I shows the color closest to the final result tannic acid. I selected wool and cotton ply use a canning kettle of enameled yarns for the first attempts, and later had a after rinsing and drying. chance to use a woven silk fabric. Rinse thoroughly until the water runs I chose two mordants that are readily clear, and then hang out of direct sunlight available to me - alum (sold in many food to dry. I have color samples from eight stores) and iron or copperas (sold years ago that still retain the same hues. through a pharmacy). Others are available These were not exposed to our bright through chemical supply houses or Florida sun, though, but even our best specialty mail order. Alum is aluminum synthetic dyes don't always stand up to potassium sulphate and is commonly that! used with cream of tartar (also from food Most natural dyes are soft shades that stores), which acts as a "helper" and also reflect the natural world around us - brightens the colors. The iron comes in a greens, yellows, and browns of all Pokeberry (Phytolacca americana) colors wool a deep rose. unbleached color. I tried the same dyes and mordants on cotton knitting ply and usually got paler versions of the wool ABOUT THE AUTHOR; Elizabeth Smith is not color. The silk was "China" silk given to an expert on dyes or native plants, but me by a friend. Silk yielded the same tones enjoys fabrics, fibers, and the native as those on the wool, sometimes with a plants in her garden. Her ex- slight variation. Finding pure fibers is not perimentation with native dyes is easy. Those that I used were available ongoing. Readers are invited to add new without having to order specialty items species to her list of dye plants. Write the Beach sunflower (helianthus debilis) colors from a hobby or weaving source. author at P. 0. Box 8092, Naples, FL wool pale greenish-beige or tan with different I haven't had access to cultivated mordants. 33941-8092. [Yikes – if she isn’t an sumac or oak galls (sources of tannin) expert, who is! – ed.] until recently. They are the recommended shades; gray, rose, and peach tones. The mordant for cotton, and will be the next I colors derived from berries tend to be the try. Suggestions of dye plants that I've most fleeting - over time the colors mellow received from others include: dye-flower into softer and paler versions of the (Coreopsis basalis), ink-berry RECOMMENDED BOOKS originals. (pokeberry), shiny blueberry, goldenrod, Complete Illustrated Book of Dyes from My dye samples were made from native and lichens. Now and then in my reading I Natural Sources. Arnold and Connie plants in my backyard or cultivated stumble across a likely prospect and add Krochmal. species throughout the neighborhood. it to my list. There are also the exciting Friends shared berries, walnut husks, and possibilities of double dyeing fabrics, try- Dyes From Your Garden. Bernice Gillette Conner. E. E. Seeman Publishing, Inc., Spanish moss for ex-perimenting. Some ing new mordants, and coloring Miami, FL. plants brought forth amazing colors, while hand-made paper, baskets, or clay vessels some that I had high hopes for (such as as early Floridians may have done. Natural Dyes and Home Dyeing. Rita J. beautyberry) were duds. The list in the accompanying box gives Androsko. Dover Publications, New York, I had the best results with 100% virgin theWool combinationsdyes to a golden ofyellow different with Coreopsis plants,. NY. wool needlepoint yam in an off-white mordants, and materials that I've used.

Smith, E. Natural Dyes from Florida Native Plants. The Palmetto, 13(3):12. http://www.fnps.org/palmetto/v13i3p12smith.pdf (19 October, 2002).

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