#alkanet

If you just want to grow roots for use in dyeing, then you just need 1 cutting, which you will then grow out and propagate prolifically, so you can harvest roots off them. Finding someone who works with Dyer's Alkanet is also difficult, but significantly easier than seeds.

Why are Alkanet tinctoria seeds impossible to find online?

This is because Alkanna tinctoria is really shitty at making seeds, and needs an incredibly genetically diverse pollinating community in order to make seeds. Something like 23+ genetically unique individuals within pollinating range to create viable seeds. These flowers DO NOT self-pollinate, and frankly hate pollinating with close siblings or children.

If you want seeds, your goal is to get 23+ genetically unique plants to grow in the same area.

But wait! (you might ask) There's so MUCH Dried & Powdered Dyer's Alkanet for sale! How do they farm plants to that extent, if they don't use seeds?

Answer: Alkanet tinctoria readily roots from cuttings. If you cut a stem off and stick it in some dirt, it'll make a clone (genetically identical to the plant you cut it off). So, with one healthy plant you can make an enormous growing operation for Harvesting Roots within a couple years. You have lots of product to harvest and sell, but the cloned plants cannot pollinate each other (it's genetically self-pollination) so there's no seed production from these operations.

Because the genetic diversity of this plant is SO CRUCIAL to seedmaking, people who know about Dyer's Alkanet generally keep their mouth shut about where it's growing in the wild. Due to plant poaching, the natural range of this plant has shrunk dramatically, and every genetically unique (non-clone) individual that is killed off can make a big impact to the pollination success of ALL OTHER Alkanna tinctoria plants around it.

-- IDENTIFYING DYER'S ALKANET

Alkanna tinctoria is one of the most widely mis-labeled plants I've ever encountered. It's also one with an incredibly high level of misinformation posted by otherwise reputable sellers of textiles and dye materials.

I've put together this guide both for my own reference, and to help other fans of growing your own natural dyes wade through the neck-deep bullshit that's clogging up internet searches. So!

There are 4 key traits to look for, if you're identifying Alkanna tinctoria from a picture. See above for pics of actual Alkanna tinctoria.

The flowers grow in CLUSTERS, at the tip of the stem. (not along the stem).

The flowers have a WIDE, DARK ORANGE THROAT. Sometimes people saturate-boost flowers to be really vividly blue, when the petals themselves are closer to a bright periwinkle. Sometimes bright sunlight makes the flowers look more purple than blue. Regardless, only Dyer's Alkanet has the blue flower with the DARK ORANGE THROAT. (Not just the stamen/pistil, but the throat itself)

Alkanna tinctoria SPRAWLS. It Trails. It Creeps. This plant always grows along the ground, in a sort of flowing mound. If you see a tall or upright bushy shape, that is NOT alkanna tinctoria.

The leaves are fairly narrow, blade-shaped with a rounded tip, and are FUZZY.

Below, you'll see pictures of flowers that are called 'Dyer's Alkanet' or 'Alkanna tinctoria', but are Not Actually That Plant.

^ These pics are of Anchusa officinalis - also called Common Alkanet, or Common Bugloss. It is TALL. It can grow several feet high, which Dyer's Alkanet would never do.

Common Alkanet has a WHITE throat, but sometimes with an orange stamen/pistil combo (watch out for that!). its flowers grow on clusters on the stem, but often upright, and not on the ground.

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^ This is Pentaglottis sempervirens - also called Green Alkanet or Evergreen Bugloss. It is perennial, it's a little fuzzy, the flower shape looks about right... BUT!

The leaf shape is all wrong. It's a wide, broad leaf that ends in a sharp point. Additionally, the flowers have a white throat - not an orange one. The flowers are also growing loosely up the stem rather than all in a single cluster at the tip of the stem. It grows tall stalks, and does not trail across the ground in a mound.

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The genus Lithospermum comes in a wide array of colors, depending on the species. The biggest way you know it's not Dyer's Alkanet is that it generally grows as an upright stalk or upright bush shape. These don't often trail and mound along the ground like Dyer's Alkanet.

Lithospermum canescens, aka Hoary puccoon is a North American native species with a purple-red dye in its roots, similar to Dyer's Alkanet.

Lithospermum erythrorhizon aka red stoneroot or purple gromwell, is often used in eastern asia (china, korea, japan) to create purple dye. It DOES create a lovely pale/light purple, but it lacks the vividness and colorfastness of Alkanet. In other words, it's extremely vulnerable to sun bleaching, and the color will degrade and fade out of the cloth quickly if put out in the sun.

Aegonychon purpurocaeruleum, aka Purple Gromwell, have flowers that resemble Dyer's Alkanet greatly, except that the leaves are too long and end in a sharp point, and the leaves also lack the characteristic fuzz. Additionally, Aegonychon grows upright, and not trailing.

This species is also called Buglossoides purpurocaerulea and Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum. (because the flowers start purple and fade to blue while blooming.)

Glandora diffusa / Lithospermum diffusa

No Orange Throat. Too small. Leaves not furry enough.

VERY hardy to both extreme colds, drought, and strong sunlight. Often grown in rock gardens where nothing else will, ahah~

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And finally, we have the product that annoys me the most:

Ratanjot, aka Vembalam pattai, is often sold under the name "Alkanna tinctoria." (That's its nickname, not its botanical name.)

With your new knowledge of identifying Different Species of Plants, how much misinformation can you spot in this infographic? What plant do you think is actually being depicted in these pictures and drawings?

So, if 'Alkanna tinctoria' isn't it's real name, what plant does Ratanjot come from?

Well, it depends on the manufacturer. SOMETIMES it uses genuine alkanna tinctoria root.

However, it's also likely to be Onosma echioides, Onsoma hookeri or Onosma hispida... or Arnebia nobilis. Or Arnebia euchroma. Or Arnebia hispidissima.

It's usually some sort of Arnebia or Onosma species.

Why are all these random plants sold under the name 'Alkanna tinctoria'?

Because the real Alkanna tinctoria root was historically used to color food red in the Mediterranean area and in India, but folks eventually found out that real Alkanna tinctoria root had some pretty toxic alkaloids in it, which cause liver and heart failure. SO, they looked for an Alkanet substitute so they could continue to dye food red without the poison. It's still named 'Alkanna tinctoria' because that's what old recipes call for.

Ratanjot is a collective name for a plant in the Boraginaceae (Borage) family which has medicinal properties and yields a red dyestuff to be used in food and cosmetics.

There's about 15 species which share the common name 'Ratanjot'.

Indian manufacturers, as far as I can tell, don't clearly differentiate on English labels between true Alkanet tinctoria root and one of the other species.

When dyeing textiles, the red dye from Onosma and Arnebia roots is not as rich/vibrant, and does not give the same DEEP RED or BRIGHT PURPLE as true Alkanna tinctoria. Instead, it makes sort of a reddish brown dye, like clay bricks. If you can get it to tint purple, it'll be a muddy, pale purple.

When shopping for Alkanet tinctoria root, it's VERY easy to accidentally buy one of the other Ratonjot powders, because it'll literally say "Alkanet Root" or "Alkanna tinctoria Root' on the package.

The only reliable way I've found is to try and buy from reputable sellers who provide multiple clear pictures of the same product, taken in bright white lighting from different angles.

True Alkanet tinctoria will have a saturated purple tint, both as root flakes and as powder. The root's skin has a blood-red color when fresh but as it dries it takes on a purple tint.

Ratonjot from one of the other species will have a sort of rusty red-brown color to the powder and root.

Both of the pictures below are from two different products which call themselves "Ratanjot" with an ingredients list saying "100% Alkanna tinctoria" and no further information.

The purplish one, I can believe is actual Dyer's Alkanet. I do not believe the red-brown one is true Alkanet - it's likely one of the other species.

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Boraginaceae Dye

The Borage family has a wide range of plants which contain purple/red dye in the roots, but they are generally seen as 'lesser' than Dyer's Alkanet because they either create a much paler purple, OR they are extremely sensitive to sunbleaching and are not practical to use on textiles that would ever be near a window.

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I hope to follow this post up with some experiments of my own in the coming year.

I plan to grow several Alkanet lookalikes and attempt various color extraction and dye methods to test vividness of dye, colorfastness, etc. I will document this journey, in the hopes of making a more thorough overview of 'Which Borage Family Plants ACTUALLY make a decent dye?"