Chamomile dye
Description
A warm, yellow dye obtained from perennial herbs such as chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile), corn chamomile (Anthemis arvensis), or dyer's chamomile (Cota tinctoria) that are native to Europe. Chamomile is a daisy-like plant that has been grown in gardens since medieval times as ground cover between stones in a walking path. The dried flowers, obtained from the plants or teabags, are used to produce a buff color on wool with an aluminum mordant, a golden color on wool with a chromium mordant and an ocher to olive green with iron mordant. It is also used for over-dyeing indigo or woad to produce warm green tones. The coloring compounds in chamomile include apigenin, quercetin, luteolin and some flavonoids. Chamomile is also used as a flavoring in foods, beverages, and cosmetics, in herbal teas, and in brewing beer.
Synonyms and Related Terms
Chamaemelum nobile(garden chamomile), Anthemis arvensis (corn chamomile); Cota tinctoria (dyer's, yellow, golden, or oxeye chamomile); CI 75580; Natural Yellow 1; camomila (Esp., Port.); manzanilla (Esp.); camomilla (It.); apigenin; camomile
Physical and Chemical Properties
- Color is fairly lightfast
- Composition = C15H10O5
- CAS = 520-36-5
Resources and Citations
- R.J. Adrosko, Natural Dyes in the United States, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC, 1968
- S. M. Robertson, Dyes From Plants, Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1973
- Helmut Schweppe, Schweppe color collection index and information book
- Palmy Weigle, Ancient Dyes for Modern Weavers, Watson-Guptill Publications, New York, 1974
- Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
- The Merck Index, Martha Windholz (ed.), Merck Research Labs, Rahway NJ, 10th edition, 1983 Comment: entry 2082
- The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998
- Colour Index International online at www.colour-index.org
- Sigma Dyes, Stains and Natural Pigments, Infrared Library, Nicolet, 1991-1995
- Wikipedia: Chamomile Accessed April 2026