From: Household dyeing plants and traditional uses in some areas of Italy
Binomial name, vernacular name, family, voucher specimen | Part used | Way of use | Use | Colour | Districts, Localities and References | N° Inf. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Allium cepa L. – Cipolla Liliaceae (GU14D) | Leaves or flakes (bulb) | Decoction | To paint Easter eggs | Yellow | Abruzzo (Teramo district) [7] | 2 |
Alnus glutinosa (L.) Gaertn. – Auzzano Betulaceae (GU2D) | Bark | Decoction | As a felt dye | Black | Central Latium [6] | 1 |
Anthemis tinctoria L. – Occhio di Bue Compositae (GU4D) | Flower heads | Ptisan | As a dye for fabrics | Yellow | Southern Latium [6] | 1 |
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (L.) Sprengel – Ericaceae (GU7D) | Leaves | Decoction | As a dyeing agent and to tan leather | Not referred | Abruzzo (Pacentro) [3] | 1 |
Calamintha nepeta (L.) Savi – Mentucce Labiatae (GU13D) | Aerial part | Decoction | As a dyeing agent | Light green | Abruzzo (Guardiagrele) [3] | 1 |
Capsicum annuum L. Piparioje (Abruzzo) | Leaves | Decoction | As a dye for cloth | Yellow | Abruzzo (Teramo district)[7], southern Marche [4] | 2 |
Solanaceae (GU25D) | As above | As above | Green | Abruzzo (Teramo district) [7] | 1 | |
Centaurium erythraea Rafn | Plant in bloom | Decoction | Used by shepherds to dye wool | Greenish yellow | Abruzzo (Pacentro) [3] | 1 |
Biondella (Latium) Gentianaceae (GU11D) | As above | Decoction | To bleach hair | Yellow | Abruzzo (Lama dei Peligni, Luco) [3, u.d.] | 2 |
As above | Concentrated infusion | As above | Yellow | Latium (Anzio) [6] | 1 | |
Daphne gnidium L. Su Truiscu Thymelaeaceae (GU27D) | Stem and leaves, cut into small pieces | Decoction | Plant parts are boiled in water for about 2 hours, adding some alum for a yellow-green shade or lime for a pale yellow. Wool is boiled in the filtered mixture for half an hour. It is left to stand in the covered container till the following day. | Yellow-green and soft-yellow. More intense shades are obtained with older plants | Sardinia (Nule) [5] | 2 |
Euphorbia characias L. Ua Euphorbiaceae (GU8D) | Aerial part | See "use" | It is boiled in a cauldron in moderate doses for not longer than an hour as it is highly toxic (the sharp and irritating smoke, should not be inhaled). Wool is added, boiled for 30' and left to cool in the covered cauldron. | Very persistent off-white | Sardinia (Nule) [5] | 2 |
Fraxinus excelsior L. Frassino Oleaceae (GU17D) | Leaves and walnut husks with ivy leaves (and, if available, berries) | Maceration in water | Used to dye some types of cloth after a day soaking in water. Ivy provides colour and its saponins dissolve the plants dyeing substances in the water and make them more easily absorbed by cloth. | Lasting dark green | Latium (Trevi nel Lazio) [6] | 1 |
Fraxinus ornus L. Ornello Oleaceae (GU18D) | Bark of branches | Decoction | As a wool dye | Greenish-yellow or apple-green | Central Latium [6] | 1 |
Hedera helix L. Ellera Araliaceae (GU1D) | Fruits | Juice | As a dye for clothes (see F. excelsior) | Brown | Latium (Farnese, Trevi nel Lazio) [6] | 2 |
Leaves | Decoction | To wash delicate clothes and brighten the colour | Abruzzo (Penne)[u.d.], Latium [6] | 1 6 | ||
Isatis tinctoria L. Cruciferae (GU6D) | Aerial parts | Not referred (N.r.) | As a dyeing agent for cloth | Yellow green | Abruzzo [8] | N.r. |
Juglans regia L. Noce | Husks | Maceration/decoction | As a dyeing agent for wool | Black | Sardinia (Nule) [5] | 2 |
Juglandaceae (GU12D) | Roots | Decoction (30–60') | As a dye for clothes | Lasting brown | Latium (Staffoli) [6] | 1 |
Leaves, husks | Decoction/Maceration | As above | Brown | Abruzzo (Majella and Teramo districts) [3,7], Latium [6], Marche [2] | 10 | |
Leaves, husks | Decoction/Maceration | As a dyeing agent for hair (women) | Brown | Abruzzo (Majella district) [3], Southern-CentralLatium [6] | 4 | |
Linaria vulgaris Miller Scrophulariaceae (GU24D) | Aerial part | Ptisan | As a dyeing agent for cotton cloth | Yellow | Central Latium [6] | 1 |
Lycopersicon esculentum Miller Pemmadore-Solanaceae (GU26D) | Leaves | Ptisan | As a dye for cloth | Green | Abruzzo (Penna-piedimonte) [3] | 1 |
Matricaria chamomilla L. Capomilla Compositae (GU5D) | Flower heads (1/2 kg -1 kg) | 3 hour decoction | To dye wool | Yellow | Abruzzo (Majella district) [3] | 1 |
Flowers | Highly concentrated decoction | To bleach hair | Yellow | Abruzzo[3], Latium [6], Marche [u.d.] | 6 | |
Morus nigra L. Gelso – Moraceae (GU16D) | Wood | Decoction | To dye wool | Opaque olive-yellow | Latium [6] | 1 |
Muscari neglectum Guss. ex Ten. Pignolo, Pignocco Liliaceae (GU15D) | Flowery aerial part | Decoction | During Holy Week eggs were boiled with plant parts to make Easter Eggs. | Purplish | Southern-central Marche [4, u.d.] | 3 |
Papaver rhoeas L. Papambre | Petals | Decoction | It was used sometimes to dye fabric. | Red | Abruzzo [3, Latium [6] | 2 |
Papaveraceae (GU19D) | Buds and petals | Used as lipstick and rouge | Abruzzo [u.d.], Latium [6] | 2 | ||
Parietaria diffusa Merth. et Koch – Palatana Urticaceae (GU28D) | Aerial part | Ptisan | Used in remarkable quantities to dye hemp sacks or faded green clothes. | Intense green | Abruzzo (Pacentro) [3] | 1 |
Pinus halepensis Miller Pino Pinaceae (GU20D) | Bark | Decoction | To dye fishermen's nets (up to WWII) | Reddish | Marche [4] | 1 |
Populus nigra L. Pioppo Salicaceae (GU23D) | Fresh bark of young branches | Decoction | After one hour boiling, the wool was immersed for a further 30 minutes | Golden yellow | Central Latium [6] | 1 |
Quercus cerris L. Cerro Fagaceae (GU9D) | Bark | Decoction | As a dyeing agent | Very dark | Abruzzo [3] | 1 |
Quercus pubescens Willd. – Cerqua | Bark | Decoction | As a dyeing agent | Very dark | Abruzzo[3,7], Marche [2] | 3 |
Fagaceae (GU10D) | Bark/Galls | Decoction | As a dyeing agent | Very dark | Abruzzo [7] | 1 |
Galls | Juice | As ink | Very dark | Marche [2] | 1 | |
Rhamnus alaternus L. Su Laru Rhamnaceae (GU21D) | Bark gathered in spring | Decoction | The dried bark is set to boil for an entire day while water is added to compensate for evaporation. In the evening, wool is dipped into the cauldron and sprinkled with ash. | Brown | Sardinia (Nule) [5] | 2 |
Rubia peregrina L. Sa Ruza Rubiaceae (GU22D) | Roots are still used, prefera-bly of plants grown in sunny areas. | See "use" | The woody part is removed from the washed roots. The roots are crushed to a pulp and boiled in water for about 4 hours. Wool is added and left to boil for a further 30'. This procedure results in a pink shade. To obtain a shade between "dark rust" and brown, the wool is placed in a wide container, sprinkled with ash and covered liquid obtained from the decoction. It needs constant and careful stirring. | See "use" | Sardinia (Nule) [5] | 2 |
Sambucus nigra L. | Flowers | Decoction | To dye white doilies | Dark yellow | Latium [6] | 1 |
Zambuco | Fruits | Juice | As a dyeing agent for must | Blackish | Abruzzo [7] | 2 |
Caprifoliaceae (GU3D) | Fruits | Juice | As ink | Blackish | Abruzzo [7], Latium [6], Marche [2] | 9 |
Urtica dioica L. | Root | Ptisan | To dye cloth | Yellow | Latium [6] | 1 |
Ortica Urticaceae (GU29D) | Leaves | Decoction | To paint Easter eggs | Green | Central Marche [2] | 1 |