description Genista tinctoria Overview
Genista tinctoria, known as dyer's greenweed or dyer's broom, is a low-growing European flowering shrub in the legume family Fabaceae. Its yellow flowers and other plant material were used to produce a yellow textile dye; overdyeing that yellow with blue from woad or indigo produced green cloth, including the color historically known as Kendal green. The species is therefore relevant to botany, natural-dye history, and traditional textile production.
help Genista tinctoria FAQ
What is Genista tinctoria?
Genista tinctoria is dyer's greenweed, also called dyer's broom, a low-growing shrub in the bean family Fabaceae. It produces clusters of yellow flowers and is the plant named in the Latin binomial Genista tinctoria. [Royal Horticultural Society](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/7743/genista-tinctoria-dyer-s-greenweed-base-broom-dye-weed-dyer-s-broom-dyer-s-greenwood-greening-weed-greenweed-greenwood-kendal-green-rock-broom-salem-wood-wax-waxen-woad-woad-wax-wood-waxen-melynog-y-waun/details)
How was Genista tinctoria used to make dye?
Its flowers and other plant material were used to create a yellow dye for wool and linen. Overdyeing that yellow with blue woad or indigo could produce green shades such as historic Kendal green.
Where does dyer's greenweed grow?
It is native across much of Europe and extends into nearby western Asia. The plant prefers dry to fairly damp calcareous ground, including heathland and dune valleys.
Is dyer's greenweed the same plant as dyer's woad?
No, they are different species and different plant families. Genista tinctoria is a Fabaceae shrub that gives yellow, while dyer's woad is Isatis tinctoria in the mustard family and is associated with blue indigo dye.
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