Primrose Yellow Natural Dyes

Nyctanthes-arbor-trusts L., is the night flowering jasmine or parijat or hengra bubar which is a species of Nyctanthes native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. The flowers are fragrant, with a five to eight -lobed with Corolla with an orange red centre. The bright orange tubes of the flowers contain a saffron-yellow colouring matter called Nyctanthin, which is identical with crocheting from saffron. The flower contains an abundance of mannitol and is emmenagogue, which can be used medicinally to provoke menstruation. Anciently the dye was also used for dyeing cotton cloth and as a cheap substitute for saffron in colouring the robes of Buddhist priests. It imparts a beautiful orange, yellow or golden colour like saffron, but the colour is easily washed off, which rapidly fades in the sun. Use of limejuice or alum in the dye bath makes the colour moderately resistant to light, soap and acid.