Before you begin, it’s important to know what a dye plant is.
All plants can produce colour, but only some are truly considered dye plants.
These are plants whose certain parts (roots, leaves, flowers, bark, etc.) can be used to make dyes or colorants.
Traditionally, they are mainly used to colour natural textile fibres such as wool, cotton, or silk. But they are also found in food or body colorants, for example for makeup or certain ritual paints. They can also be transformed into pigments for making paints (they are then called lake pigments).
Dyeing and lake pigment making are closely related, as they both use soluble coloring substances extracted from plants or insects.
For those who wish to make their own paints, it is essential to understand how dyers obtain their colors, as these are precisely the shades we aim to transform into pigments.
In textile dyeing, the dye fixes directly onto natural fibers — wool, cotton, or silk — through specific chemical interactions.
The production of lake pigments is based on a similar principle, but the main difference lies in the support used: instead of a fabric, the dye is precipitated onto an inert support. This step transforms the soluble dye into a stable and insoluble pigment, which can then be ground and mixed with a binder to produce paint.
In the following table, I present a list of plants along with the colors that can be obtained using alum as a metallic salt. It is also possible to achieve different shades with certain plants by adding iron, copper sulfate, citric acid, etc. This list is not exhaustive!
| Plante | Nom latin | Partie utilisée | Couleur obtenue | Colorant | Visualisation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| đŸ”µ Teintes bleues | |||||
| Baptisia | Baptisia tinctoria | Feuilles, tiges | Bleu indigo (pĂ¢le) | IndigoĂ¯des | |
| Maurelle / Tournesol à drapeaux | Chrozophora tinctoria | Parties aériennes | Bleu-violet (tournesol) | Croconique (tricoccine) | |
| Indigotier | Indigofera tinctoria | Feuilles | Bleu indigo profond | IndigoĂ¯des (indican) | |
| Laurier des teinturiers | Wrightia tinctoria | Feuilles | Bleu indigo | IndigoĂ¯des | |
| Liane-indigo / Gara | Philenoptera cyanescens (= Lonchocarpus cyanescens) | Feuilles | Bleu indigo | IndigoĂ¯des | |
| Marsdenia | Marsdenia tinctoria | Feuilles | Bleu indigo | IndigoĂ¯des | |
| Pastel des teinturiers / Guède | Isatis tinctoria | Feuilles | Bleu indigo | IndigoĂ¯des | |
| RenouĂ©e des teinturiers | Persicaria tinctoria (= Polygonum tinctorium) | Feuilles | Bleu indigo | IndigoĂ¯des (indican) | |
| Indigo d’Assam | Strobilanthes cusia (= S. flaccidifolius) | Feuilles, tiges | Bleu indigo profond | IndigoĂ¯des | |
| đŸŸ¤ Teintes brun Ă noir | |||||
| Acacia à cachou | Acacia catechu | Bois, aubier | Brun roux à noir | Tanins catéchiques (catéchine) | |
| CampĂªche | Haematoxylum campechianum | Bois du cÅ“ur | Noir bleutĂ© / Violet-noir | HĂ©matoxyline | |
| Henné | Lawsonia inermis | Feuilles séchées | Brun orangé à brun foncé | Lawsone (naphtoquinone) | |
| Noyer commun | Juglans regia | Coques vertes, feuilles | Brun foncé à noir | Juglone (naphtoquinone), tanins | |
| Sumac des corroyeurs | Rhus coriaria | Feuilles, fruits | Brun beige / Gris-brun | Tanins galliques | |
| ChĂªne | Quercus robur | Écorce, galle | Brun foncĂ© | Tanins | |
| Aulne | Alnus glutinosa | Écorce, cônes | Brun moyen | Tanins | |
| Saule | Salix spp. | Écorce | Brun gris | Tanins | |
| đŸŸ¡ Teintes jaunes | |||||
| Camomille des teinturiers | Anthemis tinctoria | Capitules | Jaune clair | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| Chanvre bĂ¢tard | Galeopsis tetrahit | Parties aĂ©riennes | Jaune verdĂ¢tre | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| ChĂªne quercitron | Quercus velutina | Écorce intĂ©rieure | Jaune orangĂ© vif | Quercitrine (flavonoĂ¯de) | |
| Clinopode commun | Clinopodium vulgare | Parties aĂ©riennes fleuries | Jaune paille | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| Curcuma | Curcuma longa | Rhizomes | Jaune vif à orangé | Curcumine | |
| GenĂªt des teinturiers | Genista tinctoria | Parties aĂ©riennes | Jaune dorĂ© | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| Oignon (pelures jaunes) | Allium cepa | Tuniques sèches | Jaune dorĂ© | QuercĂ©tine (flavonoĂ¯de) | |
| Gaude / RĂ©sĂ©da des teinturiers | Reseda luteola | Parties aĂ©riennes | Jaune vif naturel | LutĂ©oline, apigĂ©nine (flavonoĂ¯des) | |
| Rhubarbe | Rheum spp. | Racines | Jaune Ă jaune brun | Anthraquinones, tanins | |
| Safran | Crocus sativus | Stigmates | Jaune orangĂ© lumineux | Crocine, crocĂ©tine (carotĂ©noĂ¯des) | |
| Sarrette des teinturiers | Serratula tinctoria | Parties aĂ©riennes | Jaune verdĂ¢tre | FlavonoĂ¯des (lutĂ©oline) | |
| Tanaisie commune | Tanacetum vulgare | Fleurs | Jaune vert | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| Tussilage | Tussilago farfara | Capitules, feuilles | Jaune pĂ¢le | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| Millepertuis | Hypericum perforatum | Sommités fleuries | Jaune doré | Naphthodianthrones | |
| Solidage (verge d’or) | Solidago virgaurea | SommitĂ©s fleuries | Jaune clair | FlavonoĂ¯des | |
| Bouleau | Betula pendula | Feuilles, Ă©corce | Jaune / Brun clair / Rose pĂ¢le | FlavonoĂ¯des, tanins | |
| đŸŸ Teintes oranges | |||||
| Cryptocarya | Cryptocarya rubra (= Cryptocarya alba) | Écorce | Orange rougeĂ¢tre | Tanins, pigments phĂ©noliques | |
| Curcuma | Curcuma longa | Rhizomes | Orange vif | Curcumine | |
| Gaillet gratteron | Galium aparine | Racines | Rouge orangé | Anthraquinones | |
| đŸ”´ Teintes rouge Ă brun | |||||
| Aspérule des teinturiers | Asperula tinctoria | Racines | Rouge rosé | Anthraquinones | |
| AspĂ©rule odorante | Galium odoratum | Racines | Rouge pĂ¢le | Anthraquinones | |
| Carthame des teinturiers | Carthamus tinctorius | Fleurs | Rouge carmin Ă orange | Carthamine, safflor jaune | |
| Coquelicot | Papaver rhoeas | PĂ©tales | Rouge vif | Anthocyanes | |
| Fenugrec | Trigonella foenum-graecum | Graines | Brun jaunĂ¢tre Ă rouge brun | FlavonoĂ¯des, tanins | |
| Garance du Sikkim | Rubia sikkimensis | Racines | Rouge profond | Anthraquinones | |
| Garance des teinturiers | Rubia tinctorum | Racines | Rose / Rouge profond / Carmin | Anthraquinones | |
| Garance voyageuse | Rubia peregrina | Racines | Rouge moyen | Anthraquinones | |
| Henné | Lawsonia inermis | Feuilles séchées | Rouge orangé à brun roux | Lawsone (naphtoquinone) | |
| Nerprun alaterne | Rhamnus alaternus | Baies, feuilles | Rouge Ă brun rouge | Anthracènes, flavonoĂ¯des | |
| Noyer commun | Juglans regia | Coques, feuilles | Brun roux Ă brun rouge | Juglone, tanins | |
| Orcanette des teinturiers | Alkanna tinctoria | Racines | Rouge violet Ă pourpre | Alkanine, shikonine (naphtoquinones) | |
| Orcanette jaune | Alkanna lutea | Racines | Rouge-rose | Naphtoquinones | |
| Orseille | Roccella tinctoria | Thalle du lichen | Violet rouge / Pourpre | Acide orseillique (orcinol) | |
| Pernambouc (BrĂ©sillet) | Paubrasilia echinata | Bois du cÅ“ur | Rouge Ă rouge orangĂ© | BrazilĂ©ine, braziline | |
| Roucou (Rocou) | Bixa orellana | Graines (arille) | Rouge orangĂ© vif | Bixine, norbixine (carotĂ©noĂ¯des) | |
| Sumac des corroyeurs | Rhus coriaria | Feuilles, fruits | Rouge brun / Brun beige | Tanins galliques | |
| đŸŸ£ Teintes violettes | |||||
| Sureau noir | Sambucus nigra | Baies | Violet foncé | Anthocyanes | |
| Mûrier sauvage | Rubus fruticosus | Fruits | Violet moyen | Anthocyanes | |
