Maple bark

Norway mapleAcer platanoides

Description

Bark from Norway maple trees (Acer platanoides) and silver maple (Acer saccharinum). Red maple (Acer rubrum) bark gives a pale gray (Cotton) to rose-tan (Wool) color using an alum Mordant. Changing mordants to copper sulfate produces a dark gray while chrome produces and beige color. Silver maple bark gives a tan color with Alum and a black with Copper. The drab colors from the maple bark dyes have good color fastness.

Maple dyed fabric

Synonyms and Related Terms

Norway maple trees (Acer platanoides); silver maple (Acer saccharinum); écorce d'érable (Fr.);

Resources and Citations

• R.J. Adrosko, Natural Dyes in the United States, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC, 1968

• John and Margaret Cannon, Dye Plants and Dyeing, Herbert Press, London, 1994

• The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998