NATIVE AMERICAN DYES 


Only when documentation has been found are specific tribal 

names given


Alder (Alnus incana (L.) Moench., Alnus rhombifolia, Alnus serrulata ) 

used by Menominee, Ojibwe, Potawatomi

reddish brown from bark

Birch


Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)

yellow, gold from leaves and stems; shades 

of green from flower heads

Black walnut


           (all credit to original photographer)


Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis L.)  

used by Menominee, Ojibwe, Potawatomi

red, orange red; also used to dye skin


Bur Oak


                         Juglans cinerea L                (all credit to original photographer)



Butternut  (Juglans cinerea L.) used by Menominee, Ojibwe, Potawatomi

brown from nut husks, black from bark, deep black when bark is boiled with blue clay


Bristly Crowfoot (Ranunculus 

pennsylvanicus) 

used by Potawatomi and Menominee

entire plant boiled for dye, red from roots


 Cedar


 Chokecherry


Cottonwood


Dyer's Coreopsis  (Coreopsis tinctoria)

yellow, tan, gold, orange, brown from 

chopped plant

Goldenrod (Solidago spp) 

Blue-stemmed goldenrod (S. caesia) 

gray goldenrod (S. nemoralis) 

early goldenrod  (S. juncea) 

Canada goldenrod (S. canadensis) 

showy goldenrod (S. speciosa)


dark gold to brown from flower heads; 

mustard orange and brown dyes can be 

obtained from the whole plant




Goldthread (Coptis trifolia) 

used by Potawatomi

yellow obtained by boiling the cloth with the

 roots

Hazelnut  Corylus cornuta

bluish dye from roots (Thompson); 

seed hulls boiled with butternut hulls to 

make black 

(Ojibwe)


Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr.) 

used by Ojibwe and Menominee

dark red from bark


(all credit to original photographer)

Hooked Crowfoot (Ranunculus 

recurvatus) used by Menominee 

red from root and yellow can be 

produced; the Ojibwe used burr oak to set

 the color which was probably red, the 

Forest Potawatomi used the 

entire plant to produce a yellow dye


 Jewelweed, Spotted Touch-Me-Not

(Impatiens biflora) 

used by Menominee and Potawatomi

orange or deep yellow using the entire 

plant

Labrador Tea (ledum groenlandicum 

Oeder) used by Potawatomi 

brown

 Lambsquarter (Chenopodium alba)

green from young shoots

 Liverleaf (Hepatica triloba)

used by Potawatomi

yellow from roots

 Red Maple (Acer rubrum)

The boiled inner bark yields a purple colour

dyes wool a golden tan

 Red Oak (Quercus rubra) 

used by Potawatomi

brownish-red from bark

 Sorrels (Oxalidaceae) 

used by Menominee and Ojibwe

yellow from whole plant


St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) 

green, dark brownish red, browns from 

flowers only

Strawberry Blite, Strawberry Spinach

(Chenopodium capitatum) 

used by Potawatomi

used as a rouge on skin for clan marks, to 

heighten color in cheeks and lips


Sumac (Rhus typhina L.) 

Used by Menominee and Ojibwe

yellow from roots


Yarrow (Achillia)   

yellows and golds from leaves and flowers