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Did you know that a rainbow of natural dyes can be made from plants?
Today most commercial dyes are artificial or chemical based, but throughout history people have used plants to create natural dyes for coloring. The art of dyeing with plants was well established in India, China and parts of South America by 3,000 B.C. Ancient writings describe over 1,000 sources of natural dyes. The first "dye recipe book" was written in 1548. In 1856, the first chemical based dye was accidentally discoverd from a coal-tar by-product. This ultimately led to the decline of natural dyes. However, there is a renewed interest today in dye plant gardening and raising wool for dyeing, spinning, and weaving. Plant-based dyes are more muted than their chemical counterparts and tend to differ slightly from batch to batch.

Resources -

Native Dye Plants of United States

Dye Plant Curriculum Integration

Dye Plant Lesson Plan

Another Dye Lesson Plan Part 1

Another Dye Lesson Plan Part 2

Plants - (plantings vary from year to year)

Common Name	Scientific Name
Yucca	Yucca glauca
Common Flax	Linum usitatissimum L.
Cotton	Gossy pium
Ladys Bedstraw	Galium verum
Safflower	Carthamus tinctorius
Madder	Rubia tinctorium
Komo Amaranthus	Amaranthus cruentus
Dyers Coreopsis	Coreopsis tinctorius
Calendula/Pot Marigold	Calendula officinalis
Golden Marguerite	Anthemis tinctoria
Dyers Broom	Genista tinctoria
Autumn Beauty Sunflower	Helianthus annuus
Weld	Reseda luteola
Woad	Isantis tinctoria
False Indigo	Baptisia
Black-eyed Susan	Rudbeckia hirta
Indigo	Indigofera suffruticosa
Indigo	Indigofera tinctoria
Dyers Knotweed	Polygonum tinctorium
Dyers Alkanet	Alkanna tinctoria
Dahlia	Dahlia
Hopi Red Dye Amaranthus	Amaranthus cruentus x A. powellii