Plants, flowers and leaves that we use to dye

Even if the name of this plant derives from the Latin word cardus, it takes its meaning from the Greek word ardis, referring to the spiny shape of the plant.

The origin of this plant is related to the many legends about the Sicilian shepherd Daphni: when he died the gods Pan and Daphne were really upset so they let the cardoon plant blooming.
Commonly used in medicine and cookery, this plant revealed dyeing properties, which we use in our creations.

Well-known in Italian cookery, it is also used to dye. 

Outstandingly from this simple and humble vegetable we can obtain a gold yellow dye bath to colour our fabrics.

Yellow and orange annual flowers native of North America, usually associated to cheerfulness: their growth, from June until October in every soil, only requires the sunlight

Annual yellow or orange flower native of North America: it can resist both warm and cold temperatures, but it needs the sun light to grow.

For its bright colours, it is commonly considered the symbol of cheerfulness.
The specie tinctoria differs from the others for its central black spot.

Cosmea
Ornamental plant native of Mexico, its name comes from the Greek cosmos, referring to the concepts of harmony and order instead of the universe as one might suppose: his name was given for the disposition of its petals. Cosmos represent the symbol of grace, integrity and simplicity.

Although for a long time gardeners have ignored this plant and it was possible to find it only in the countryside, nowadays it is often used to revitalize gardens during cold seasons for its huge autumnal foliage.

African daisy
Head cone-shaped flower made up of small inflorescences, it is considered symbol of freedom.

Due to its origin and for its resemblance with ordinary daisies, this flower is also known with the definition of African daisy.

The name comes from the Greek words helio, sun, and chrysos, gold.
This herbaceous plant grows in summer – July and August, commonly found in the Mediterranean area, it is typical of Central and South Italy.

Although it is commonly used to prepare perfumes, thanks to its unique scent and fragrance, it is also widely used in medicine for its anti-inflammatory property.

This name was given from Greek word to hide, referring to its petals’ disposition, which hides the rest of this flower until the complete blooming. For this characteristic it is considered symbol of protection.

Although the eucalyptol is an evergreen plant native of Australia, since two centuries it is possible to find it in Europe: it was used to purify the Agro Pontino area in Italy for its properties of water absorbing and for keeping away mosquitos and their related disease.

Acerus
As the first major of Montreal once said, “The king of our woods, the symbol of Canadian people”, the maple leaf is the distinctive element of the Canadian flag since 1965.

Strong and long living, the maple tree represents the symbol of fall season.
Its name originates from Latin Acer Acris, stinging or sharpened for its leaves shape and because of the use of its wood to make lances.
To dye our products we use the following maple trees types: the Sugar maple, the Norway, the Field and the Italian maple.

Momiji
Acer palmatum or momiji, for the shape of its leaves coloured by an intense and vivid red in autumn season, is the symbol of impermanence in the Japanese traditional culture.

In ancient times, the Japanese nobility used to gather under momiji trees singing, playing and reading poetry seated on red leaves’ carpets.

“The rose is God’s perfume and men’s joy,
It decorates the grace of the blooming love,
it is Aphrodite’s favourite flower.”
Anacreon, 53rd Ode

Traditionally considered symbol of beauty and passion, roses are lovers’ favourite gift.
Since it is the most known among flowers, there is no need to introduce it.

Fog tree
Also known as Fog tree for its flower filament resembling a giant cotton ball, its leaves’ colour is usually red or violet and each part of this tree is lightly poisoning.

During the past, monks from Bardolino’s monastery discovered inside its leaves tannin and turpentine, two substances used to tan leather.

Indigofera tinctoria
The Indigo plant is native of India, China and Java Island: for its origin the Latin name Indicum means Indian, the bigger country where it is produced.
The indigo has violet leaves and grape-like flowers with an early blooming.
The plant is cut twice o three times in a year: the colouring pigment is obtained from its leaves, both fresh or dried, let them macerated in baths with the addition of water or, sometimes, lime water.

THE COLOR
The indigo is considered the colour of harmony and, according to colour therapy, it is the symbol of spirituality, help and meditation.
It is also believed that indigo makes a positive improvement of personal state of mind: for this, it is recommended to heal depression and melancholy.

HISTORY
The indigo was utilized by different cultures: from ancient Egypt, Greece and by ancient Roman to all of the Asian cultures.
Since it has been always considered a precious colour, the cloth dyed with indigo were associated with nobility and authority.

CURIOSITY
The extracted colour is not the classical blue, in fact the dye bath is a yellow like liquid: for this reason, the cloth still wet dyed with indigo are yellow and they become blue from green thanks to the oxidant power of the air.
The peculiarity of indigo is to enhance its colour over time: it becomes much more brighter instead of turning into grey, as it happens to other colours.

St. Jhon Worth
Commonly known as “St. John’s worth”, is a plant native to some areas of Europe and Asia.

Through the history this plant has commonly recalled the diabolic dimension: in the Middle Age it was believed to have the power of scare away evil spirits and bad luck.
For this reason, little bunches of hypericum were hanged on houses’ doors and kept under the pillow. Moreover, the hypericum was generally used during rituals against the evil.

Its common name “St. John’s worth” comes from the European tradition to harvest this plant on the 24th of June, the so-called “Night of St. John”: it was believed that during this night witches and evil spirits went out in the streets to celebrate magical rituals.

Haematoxylon Campechianum is an evergreen plant native of the Capeche Bay in Mexico, currently found in the whole continent of America: the common madder can grow up 15m in height.
The name Blood wood comes from the Greek word haima, where -atos means blood, referred to the red colour of the tree, and xylon stands for wood.
On the contrary of one might expected, the colouring pigment obtained from this tree is a shade of purple.

THE COLOR
In reality, the colouring pigment of this plant, the haematoxylin, is colourless: only when it is exposed to air takes an intense colour, known as haematin.
To obtain this pigment, the wood has to be peeled, cut it into pieces and let it macerate.
Depending on the addictive employed, it is possible to obtain different shades from yellow-red to violet-red: we extract the purple and lilac colours.

HISTORY
The Blood wood tree was discovered and brought in Europe by Spanish, after they put their feet on the American ground.
From XIV century this tree was grown in Europe and for its qualities it was employed to dye.

Juglans Regia
This magnificent tree, native of the Himalaya region, can reach up 25 meters in high.
However the walnut tree was grown also in Europe from ancient times: it is not only widely used in medicine and as building material, it is also used in dyeing process to obtain a natural brown shade colour.
Juglans, its generic name, comes from the contraction of Jovis glans meaning “the nut of god Jupiter” in Latin.

THE COLOUR
Although in the whole walnut tree is present the orange-red shaded pigment called juglone, the brown colour comes from both the nut, its fruit harvested in autumn, and its leaves, gathered in summer.
The process to extract this colour can last over an entire year after hot or cold fermentation or maceration of the raw material.
The dye technique using the walnut fruits was implied from the time of Ancient Persian Empire for their production of carpets.

HISTORY
Since the cultivation of the walnut tree has started in the very past times, it is possible to find several legends about this magnificent tree.
One of the first ones come from Greece, probably the first European place where was grown.
The Greek name of the walnut tree, Karya Basilica, means “royal walnut” because it was brought there from Persian kings.

THEORY OF SIGNATURE
Long before the discovery of modern pharmacology, the ancient physicians employed the doctrine of signs to heal any disease.
According to this theory, it was believed that everything existing in nature and resembling a part of the human body for shape or colour was suitable to heal that specific part.
The nut, reminding the shape of human brain, was widely employed to heal brain related disease.

THE MYTH OF DIONYSUS AND CARYA
Dionysus, during his visit to Dion’s house, fell in love with one of his daughters: the graceful Carya.
After Dionysus departure, Carya’s sisters, pushed by envy and resentment for their sister’s affair, guarded Carya to prevent her from having a relation with the god.
Dionysus, after several warnings for the violation of the restriction imposed to them, drove mad the two sisters and transformed them into rocks.
Carya, suffering for the envy of her sisters, was almost died: the pitiful Dionysus changed her into a walnut tree. Since then, this tree has become object of many celebration and pagan rituals.

LEGEND RELATED TO SAINT JOHN'S NIGHT
For centuries, pagan rituals celebrating the walnut tree continued until the rise of Christian religion.
In fact, considering the divine nature of this tree, this pagan ritual involved exciting pageant priestesses dancing all around it.
Christian believers, inclined in considering the evil nature of women, frowned upon this type of ritual: according to this, it was believed that the legendary encounter of witches and evil spirits took place in S. John’s night.
Traditionally, one of the remedies founded to prevent the appearance of evil spirits was the Ipericum flower.

The name Reseda comes from the Latin word resedo, meaning calm and relaxing: Pliny the Elder gave this description to the plant for its therapeutic proprieties.
The reseda luteola is not implied only in medicine and in textile dyeing, but it is also possible to make ink and honey with it.
It is known to be a biennial plant: in fact, from its second year of cultivation, it can grow up 1,5 meter in height, starting to bloom flowers and seeds.
The yellow colouring pigment it is called luteolin and it is extracted from the whole plant, ad exception of its roots.
The high amount of colour is found inside its flowers, but also in its leaves, branches and seeds, especially if they are harvested in summer, just before the end of the blossoming season.
Being a spontaneous plant, it is common to find the Reseda in chalky soils of abandoned areas.

THE COLOUR
Talking about Art, the yellow colour has been always related with the divine, the light and the gold.
It is the colour identified with the sun, warm and bright: it gives light and it is vibrant and cheery!
Yellow is also the colour that recalls certainty, self-consciousness and it gives warm and vitality.

HISTORY
This plant is native of the Mediterranean area: therefore in western countries this plant has always been utilized to obtain the yellow dye from its first use in the Neolithic era.
More information about this plant comes both from the Holy Bible and from evidences of the Ancient Rome Empire: during this last era the yellow cloth dyed with Reseda Luteola were worn by Virgin Vestals and young brides.
In England, Barbarian and Gaul people used to dye with Reseda the clothes for the common folk, considering its yellow the best dye.
In France it was common to dye with Reseda the clothes for its nobility, expressing richness and glory; in Venice was used by Doges for their clerical clothes; lastly, the Scottish tweed was dye with its yellow.

CURIOSITY
According to the Sherwood Forest legend about Robin Hood, he was dressed in green: this bright and vibrant shade of green was obtained mixing the yellow from Reseda Lutea and the blue of Guado.

Rubia Tinctorum
Rubbia is an herbaceous perennial plant, which grows spontaneously in all Eastern areas; its name derives from the Latin word ruber, meaning red colour,
Although the common madder can grow up to 1,5 meter in height, the part employed to dye is its root, harvested in autumn: once it has been dried and grinded, it is stored in barrels.
The alizarin is the red-rust like colouring pigment of found in its roots.
From centuries the Rubbia has been employed to dye almost everything: cloths, hair, leather, ceramics, carpets, walls, weapons and flags.

THE COLOUR
However the Rubbia is a versatile pigment suitable to obtain several colour shades, from pink to violet, and it can be mixed with the others primary colours to make more tones, its real colour is the warm, passion related red. This colour has a remarkable effect on our mind and it is associated to different feelings and sensation: from love and passion to war and violence; it can reminds of blood, the sense of creation or of destroy and death; from the vibrant life to desperation.


HISTORY
In Middle age, thanks to commercial relations of Dutch with Eastern country, in particular Persia, Syria and Greece, the Rubbia plant started to be grown also in Europe: the biggest countries producing it were Holland and France, especially in the Provence area.
Instead, the cultivation of this plant in Italy last until the XIX century: with the red colour of Rubbia were dyed traditional clothes, historically reserved for special events and religious ceremonies.


CURIOSITY
Thanks to the great use of Rubbia during the Renaissance, in the city of Florence, the relative name was attributed to the famous family of dyers, the “Della Robbia”.

Grevillea
The genus name is a tribute to Charles Francis Greville, one of the founders of the Royal Horticultural Society

Rubus Ulmifolius
The plant is also used to delimit properties and farms, with mainly defensive functions, both for the numerous and robust thorns that cover the branches, and for the dense and tenacious tangle that they form, creating an almost impassable barrier.

Paulownia Tomentosa
The name of the genus recalls the Russian noblewoman Anna Pavlovna, daughter of Zar Paul I
Paulownia imperialis was the mon of the Tokugawa family, whose members were shoguns from 1603 to 1868. For this reason, Paulownia is now the mon of the prime minister of Japan. The leaves of Paulonia were present in an enameled plaque that was pinned to the chest of the generals of the Japanese imperial army who were awarded the title of Gensui.

The name derives from the muscogee word for tree, kutuhlpa, which means "winged head". It’s not related to the name of the Catawba people. Catalpa is occasionally used as a tonewood in guitars.

Ceratonia Siliqua
It is mainly dioecious (that is, there are plants with only male flowers and trees with only female flowers, rarely having flowers of both sexes on the same plant). It is also called carrubbio. Due to its characteristics, it is possible to have flowers, fruits and leaves on the same carob tree at the same time. It’s evergreen and the ripening of the fruits is very long.

Nandina Domestica
It is a species native to the eastern part of the Asian continent, where it is found from the Himalayas to Japan. Grown in China and Japan for centuries, it was imported into western gardens by William Kerr, who brought it to London after his first expedition to Guangdong. The scientific name was given to it by Carl Peter Thunberg and is the Latinized version of the plant's Japanese name, nan-ten.

Ginko Biloba
The plant, originally from China, is commonly called ginko or ginco or maidenhair tree. The name Ginkgo probably derives from an erroneous transcription by the German botanist Engelbert Kaempfer of the Japanese name ginkyō deriving in turn from the Chinese name "yin xing" (yín «silver» and xìng «apricot»; yínxìng, «silver apricot») . This name was attributed to the species by the famous botanist Carlo Linneo in 1771 at the time of its first botanical publication where he maintained that erroneous transcription of the original name. The name of the species (biloba) derives from the Latin bis and lobus with reference to the division into two lobes of the leaves, in the shape of a fan.The first Ginkgo biloba imported into Italy, in 1750, is found in the Botanical Garden of Padua. He is a majestic specimen.

Quercus Infectoria
A gall, also known as cecidium, is an outgrowing malformation that forms, on the leaves, branches, trunk and roots of plants. Galls are used to produce iron-gall inks. The tannins, of which the galls are very rich, are reacted with ferrous sulphate. The produced iron complex is used as ink.

Ailanthus Altissima
The species belonging to the genus Ailanthus are deciduous trees of various sizes and rapid growth. The leaves are alternate, relatively long and pinnate with a number of leaflets ranging from 13 to 41. The leaflets, often opposite, sometimes have some large teeth at the base of which is a slightly curved gland.
Another characteristic present in many species of this genus is dioecity, that is the presence of individuals with only female flowers (and therefore fruits) or with only male flowers. Some species, however, have hermaphroditic flowers.

The name of the genus comes from the Malay term "cassowary" or "kasuari", which alludes to the similarity between the plumage of the bird (Casuarius) and the foliage of the plant. The young twigs are composed of articulated segments.
The leaves, from green to gray-green, thin, acute, whitish, are united in whorls from 5 to 20 at the nodes. Most of the species are dioecious.

The name of the plant recalls that of the lieutenant of Pizarro (Francisco de Orellana) who first, in 1540, crossed the South American continent from the Pacific to the Atlantic, discovering and traveling the Amazon River. The dye is contained in the red epidermis of the seeds. Annatto is one of the longest known dyes, and has been used for more than 100 years both in Europe and in the USA to color margarine and cheeses. Some Indian populations of the coastal region of Ecuador (Santo Domingo) use a paste containing annatto to color their hair (Indios colorados)

Vitex Agnus-Castus
The chaste tree is widespread in Mediterranean humid environments. Vitex agnus castus L. is the botanical name of the plant. The name Vitex derives from Vitilium which means “intertwining” and in fact the flexible but sturdy and hard branches were once used to build palisades. The name agnus which means “lamb” and castus “chaste” refers to the anaphrodisiac property (counteracts testosterone) in humans. For this reason the buds of the plant were placed in the clothes of the monks to suppress their libido; and the seeds were called "monk's pepper", because they used them as a spice in their cooking. The spice is also known internationally as Chasteberry, Chaste tree, Monk's pepper.

Cercis Siliquastrum
The name "Tree of Judas", on the other hand, refers to the region of Judea, in the Near East, from where it would originate, and from which it spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin. Thanks also to its area of origin and to the intense flowering around Easter time. Ancient legends, linked to early Christianity, were born to symbolically represent some events of the last days of Jesus in the Gospels. The sudden appearance of the flowers of an intense lilac-violet color on the bare bark, even before the leaves, would symbolically represent the time of the Passion of Jesus. More specifically, the plant would be linked to the episode in which, under this tree, Judas Iscariot would have given the famous traitorous "kiss" to Jesus and, later, tormented by remorse, he hanged himself.
The strong diffusion of this belief seems to suggest that the siliquastro had a particular meaning, always of a passionate nature, even among some European pre-Christian cults.

It includes trees from 8 to 25 m tall, originating in North America and cultivated in Italy in mild climate locations as ornamental plants, with leaves similar to those of maples.
The name means "liquid amber" and in fact, by carving these plants, a resin with the scent of incense gushes out, which the Aztecs called "ococal" and already used for medicinal purposes (for example for colds).
The strong diffusion of this belief seems to suggest that the siliquastro had a particular meaning, always of a passionate nature, even among some European pre-Christian cults.

The name comes from the German naturalist Traugott Gerber,
In addition to being graceful ornamental plants with easy cultivation, the species of the genus Gerbera (especially G. jamesonii) are industrially cultivated for the production of cut flowers.
It was introduced in Italy for the first time by a German floriculturist around 1925-1930 but only around 1950 did it begin to be appreciated both as a cut flower and as a cultivation plant.

Junglans Nigra
It is a medium-sized walnut, whose height can reach 30 meters, with an erect trunk and wrinkled bark; the name of the plant (Canaletto walnut) derives from the internal channels that carry the chlorophyll, the external husk has a rough surface and contains a nut, round in shape, very woody, hard and wrinkled which contains a kernel of high organoleptic qualities inside they can last up to 6 months. The walnut is not marketable due to the extreme hardness of the shell linked to the kernel.

Liriodendron
The liriodendro or tulip tree is a genus of the Magnoliaceae that includes trees of considerable size, the liriodendrum tulipifera sometimes exceeds 30 m in height with cupped flowers similar outwardly to those of the tulip.
A specimen of Liriodendrum tulipifera located in the park of Villa Besana in Sirtori in the province of Lecco is one of the 10 tallest trees in Italy, reaching 52 meters in height (like a 17 floors building)

Quercus Rubra
The red oak is native to the North American Atlantic floristic region, that is the eastern states of the U.S.A. and Canada around the Great Lakes.
Introduced in Europe in the 17th century to beautify parks and gardens, it has found use as a forest species due to its ease of adaptation and rapid growth. It is used not only as an ornamental plant, given its pleasant appearance, but also for the production of timber. It is a rustic and fast-growing species, it does not show particular problems with regard to the light, it does not, however, love calcareous soils and develops well in fertile and impermeable soils. It can live up to a hundred years.

Tannin is a class of compounds contained in different plants with properties similar to those of tannic acid.
They are also used in the dyeing and printing of fabrics, in the preparation of lacquers and inks, in the clarification of wine, beer and fruit juices. The compound is found in woods, in barks, in fruits and rhizomes, in roots but generally it is meant that extracted from gall nuts, rich in tannic acid..
The richest sources of tannins are the bark of plants such as oak, chestnut, fir, acacia. Tannin was feared by panel painters, because it could also be released from already seasoned supports and darken some parts of the painting.

Acer Saccharinum
The saccharine maple or silver maple is native to the north-eastern regions of the North American continent between the United States - where it is one of the most widespread tree species - and Canada. The foliage, with a diameter of 3-5 m, is composed of leaves deciduous, opposite, five-lobed and deeply incised, with irregular teeth, bright green on the upper side and silver-white on the underside; they become a delicate yellow color, sometimes bright red.

Quercus
The name derives from the Celtic word Quer Kaer (beautiful tree) The Druids, priests of the Celtic people, had this plant in great esteem and in their rites the quercina strength, frequently appeared as an indispensable element. In the Christian religion, the cult of the Oak is referred to the feast of St. John and it’s still reported to our days, that "whoever is lucky enough to be able to sit under an oak tree at midnight on June 24 will hear all sorts of things good about his future and that night the Oak, instead of producing acorns, will produce money”

Castanea
The chestnut tree, sad for not having fruit, one day asked the Green Fairy to have it, like other trees. She promised him that she would have them, but only the following year. A few days later the chestnut hid a little family of hedgehogs in its branches, which ran away from a pack of dogs that wanted to eat it. When the Green Fairy found out about it, she returned to the chestnut tree and rewarded it by giving it immediately many fruits enclosed in small green curls: the delicious chestnuts.

Populos
The term "poplar" derives from Latin and, according to a Roman rumor reported by the ancients, it should be linked to popolus "people" because its thick foliage moved by the wind produces a buzz that recalls that of the crowd. In this regard, we can quote a common saying that derives the name of Piazza del Popolo in Rome from an ancient grove of poplars. Poplar wood also had a noble use, in fact it was used by Leonardo da Vinci to paint his famous Mona Lisa.