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Couleurs de Plantes Annatto is a shrub or tree of tropical America regions. It is also called urucum (Brazil), Achiote (Bolivia and Nicaragua), annatto tree or red lip. It takes its name from the Tupi language that call urucu; in English and in Spanish it is called achiote (name derived from the Nahuatl). It is also grown in Southeast Asia, where it was introduced in the 17th century through Acapulco, its flowers are pink and it produces red fruit filled with red seeds thorns. Its fruit, annatto (or achiote, annatto, achiote) is not edible. It is harvested and dried to extract the wax around the seeds, rich in carotenoids. Natives from South America and Caribbean islands use it as their body paint pigment or as flavoring. Traditional medicine gives it many healing properties. Annatto also serves as a natural sunscreen and avoids insect bites. It is part of the ingredients of Tascalate.

Couleurs de Plantes Dyer's Broom name comes from the Celtic root gen small bush. Its use in dyeing is attested in England in the mid of the 9th century. It has also been identified in Florentine Italian silks from end of the middle ages. We cultivate Dyer's broom in Poitou-Charentes (France). It is a perennial bush about one meter high, from the family of Papilionaceae, which flowering branches are used, mowed in early summer. We carry out the production of the extract in France.

Couleurs de Plantes Coreopsis is not well recorded but is probably one of the sources of yellow to orange dyes of pre-Columbian civilization from central and South America. The Cherokees and Apaches used Coreopsis as source of red dye. The flavonoids in Coreopsis are a mixture of chalcones and aurones (also called pigments antochlors) whose structures are known only since the mid-20th century.

Couleurs de Plantes Chinese Sumac – Gall Nut is a shrub. The galls harvested on this tree are used and known as “Chinese Wales”. In China, these galls were used for mordanting silk or cotton before dyeing. Blending with iron, it is the main source of gray on silk, especially for the dyeing of Nô theater costumes in Japan. It is the richest source of gallotanins (up to 77%).

Couleurs de Plantes Tara is a coloring substance that was already known by pre-Columbian civilizations. The first Spanish missionaries quote the black ink named nacazcolotl. Tara pods have been used extensively for leather tanning and black ink manufacturing. It was a species widely exported to Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. The pods are very rich in hydrolysable tannins (gallic and ellagic). The pods are cropped in Central America, dried and crushed.

Couleurs de Plantes Alder Buckthom, since the middle Ages, the wood of the Buckthorn was used for manufacturing gunpowder and charcoal. Then, the dried bark of the buckthorn has been used between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as a medicine for treating dermatological and oral diseases. The plant will be more particularly described by doctors and botanists from the Renaissance. Among them, the Flemish Robert Doedoens which the common name of the plant refers. This plant is also quoted by Louis-Alexandre Dambourney since late 18th century, known as source of “new” dye, extracted from the bark or fruit. The Buckthorn is still used today as medicinal plants.

Couleurs de Plantes Old Fustic was introduced to Europe by the Spanish colonizers. Its name Old Tustet or Palo fustete was given by comparison with the European fustic. If the European fustic has been known since the 5th century BC, old fustic appeared in Europe around 1510. This wood contains a lot of morin, yellow dye molecule discovered by Chevreul. This wood has assumed considerable importance in Europe for dyeing wool yellow and orange. Around years 1830, nearly 12 000 tons arrived each year in the English ports. In 1916, the United States still imported 16 000 tons. This wood is still used for leather dyeing.

Couleurs de Plantes Crushed Leaves Of Tropical Indigo (Black Henna) name comes from the Latin indicum, the Indian “who produce Indigo.” The Sanskrit nila gave in Arabic an-nil and Spanish anil. It was also at the origin of the name aniline product made by processing of Indigo. Other species of Indigo are used such as Indigofera suffruticosa Mill., I arrecta Hochst ex. A Rich or I. coerulea Roxb. Botanical identification is sometimes controversial and has evolved over time. Indigo suffruticosa was the main source of Indigo for precolombian civilizations of Mexico and Perou. It was introduced in South-East Asia. Indigofera tinctoria is probably native from India and it is still cultivated although the surfaces have been considerably reduced since the 19th century and the advent of synthetic indigo (1882).

Couleurs de Plantes Henna Extract use is very old, Egyptian women mummies found in tombs had dyed henna nails. Henna is quoted in the Bible as kofer for its fragrance properties. Andalusian poetry of the eleventh century sings henna as a hair and body dye, and as a textile dye. The dye was identified in textiles from the 15th to the 19th century in different parts of the world Today henna is widely used as ceremonial body painting (hair, nails, skin tattoo).

Couleurs de Plantes Cutch Tree is exported from the middle ages from India to China and Japan, then to Europe under the name of “terra japonica.” The Cutch tree was used for dyeing textile fibbers exposed to weather: fishing nets, boat sails, tarpaulins, tents, and also for leather. Cutch tree contains 55 to 60% of cutch tannins (hence its name), catechins, epicatechins, gallocatechins, epigallocatechins, etc. it also contains flavonols principally quercetin.

Couleurs de Plantes Myrobolam was widely used in India since ancient times for its medicinal properties. Many expressions in Sanskrit recall its powers: Pranada (giver of life) sudha (nectar) bhiskak priya (favorite doctor). Its richness in tannins and its medicinal powers are behind the word “myrobolam”. It is a large tree (up to 25 m high) quite common in Indonesia whose fruits (skin and pulp) are used. The extracts can contain up to 55% tannins type ellagitannins. These extracts are widely used to obtain black color on cotton and wool but also to prepare fibbers for a wide range of shades. It is also widely used for the manufacture of inks and leather tanning. In the 80s production was more than 100 000 tons.

Couleurs de Plantes Brazil Wood, Peachwood is a bushy and thorny shrub, common in the dry areas of Central America up to 1500 meters above sea level. The Central American redwoods were exported in the Middle Ages for use in dyeing, especially in Europe. Haematoxylum brasiletto is one of the richest in coloring molecules. The deep red color on wool and silk and good wash fastness makes it a preferred color in Europe at this time, but given its poor light fastness, this dye will be mainly used to shade red dyes of Madder (manual of recepies of Venetian dyers, 15 century). The Brasiletto is the 3rd most important source of red wood dye. Its export began in 1848 and its trade continued until the beginning of the 20th century. Wood decoctions are traditionally used to treat heart and digestive disorders.

Couleurs de Plantes Henna Leaves Crushed use is very old, Egyptian women mummies found in tombs had dyed henna nails. Henna is quoted in the Bible as kofer for its fragrance properties. Andalusian poetry of the eleventh century sings henna as a hair and body dye, and as a textile dye. The dye was identified in textiles from the 15th to the 19th century in different parts of the world Today henna is widely used as ceremonial body painting (hair, nails, skin tattoo).

Couleurs de Plantes Logwood is native from Central America where it is particularly abundant in areas of Campeche and Honduras. It was a very well-known and used species in pre-Columbian times by the name of Ek or Hec for body and textile dyeing. It was also known and used by the Aztecs under the names Huitzquauitl, Quamochitl or Curaque. This species was at the origin of a very important trade after the discovery of Americas. Intensively exploited by the Spanish for four centuries, Logwood will be massively introduced from the late 18th century in the Caribbean and in the Pacific Islands.

Couleurs de Plantes Chestnut, although fairly recent used (1819-1820) are the basis of a very important industry in the tanning of hides. It was widely used in the 19th century to dye black liners cloth. The major producers of wood and chestnut tannins were France, Italy and the United States.

Couleurs de Plantes Genipa was used for body painting. The fruit was also part of the traditional food as syrup or beverage. The dye extract is now used in cosmetic products and natural tattoos or food (jellies, jams – America). The main dye is Genipa genipin (iridoid) from the hydrolysis of geniposide. Genipa also contains tannins.