#spartium

The art of weaving the ginestra (broom - Spartium junceum)

The unspoiled region of Calabria is home to many unknown crafting techniques.

The broom is an ancient plant typical of Calabria, the southernmost region of Italy. It affords both a flower and a textile product. Its fibre looks like flax and raw silk, but feels like soft, fresh matter to the touch.

In the past the whole community helped to gather broom branches, which grew wild on the mountains. Throughout the region of Calabria, the art of weaving ‘ginestra’ broom fibres has been passed down through generations since antiquity – a manual practice that requires no electricity, elaborate machines or chemicals and produces zero pollution. The hardy shrub is harvested through summer and treated by hand to create the raw, cool fibres.

It is now being re-valued by a project for the sustainable development of Calabria’s ancient weaving traditions, and some research centres experimenting in the bio-technological processing of the fibre have been involved with a view to produce it on an industrial scale.

Broom fibres are dyed with vegetable pigments according to ancient local techniques and are woven to obtain sheets, towels, pillows, curtains, nighties and bedroom wear. The items are hand-embroidered by expert women who are well acquainted with this traditional art; a thin thread adds colour to the weft of fabrics and fills their surfaces with stories through its ornamental motifs.

Plant of the Day

Sunday 23 August 2020

Covered in flowers and thriving in the hot weather was the shrub Spartium junceum (Spanish broom, weaver's broom). This plant thrives on poor, well-drained soils in exposed, sunny sites. It can be an invasive species in places with a Mediterranean climate such as California and Oregon, Hawaii, central Chile, and southeastern Australia.