Madder root, also known as dyer’s madder, is a perennial herb in
the bedstraw family that is native to the Mediterranean and southern
Europe. It’s an attractive plant that produces star-shaped yellow
flowers and will train itself around any support provided. The herb is
also xerophytic, meaning highly drought-resistant. The roots, which may
be harvested in the second year, contain the organic pigments alizarin
and purpurin.
For centuries, the plant has been used to make natural dyes for cloth
and wool. Evidence of the plant being used to dye garments have been
found in ancient archaeological sites in India dating to the 3rd
millennium BCE and in France circa 570 AD.
Madder was also widely used in England, where it remains a classic
specimen of the traditional medieval-style English garden. The 17th
century English botanist Nicholas Culpeper, who wrote that madder has
affinity with the red planet and the blood, recommended the herb for
“burstings.” It was also about this time that madder became the dye
source for the scarlet-colored coatees worn by the British redcoats.
