Growing CAlifornia Wildflowers for Dyeing

How to Grow California wildflowers for botanical Dyeing

It's finally Spring and we've been having some beautiful sunny weather here in Southern California, which has inspired me to begin planting my dye garden this Spring. I will be sharing a few posts under this category over the next month, so if you are interested in growing plants for dye then please follow along! Currently, I planted my indigo seeds and I am growing a mix of California Wildflowers to start off my dye garden. At the moment, the indigo and wildflower mix has just been started, and I can't wait to share the progress from Day 7 as they sprout to Day 21 as they begin to bloom. I selected this particular mix for our evening Botanical Dye workshop on May 10th.
This Waterwise mix includes 20 annuals: 
Some of the highlights include, California poppies, Desert Marigolds, Verbena, Primrose, Bluebells and Calendula. I am looking forward to experimenting beforehand to see what dyes each flower might yield. I will also transfer all over our indigo seedlings to these raised Cedar planters that came in this week. Even if you just have a few containers or pots scattered about, you can still try out this Water-wise Mix. Some of the remaining planter space is for wildflowers, although I have them currently sprinkled around many different places in our garden and one pot near the front porch. These are drought-tolerant, which I like and the reviews say they can be somewhat forgotten about as far as daily watering. 

At the workshop in May, we are going to be eco-printing large silk square scarves. I love the high-quality silk as a surface and I source them ethically from Maiwa Textiles in Vancouver. If silk is not your thing, you could also do a cotton piece, which we can work out in advance. You can join below if you are interested in the group workshop here in my garden. 

Join our Botanical Dye Workshop with Salt Scrubs

The last time we offered this workshop was over a year ago, so I should also say that we only host this particular workshop once in Spring, one-time annually, so it is a special opportunity to learn to dye botanically. The last time a gardener friend of mine, donated lots of wildflower clippings that turned into beautiful flower prints on fabric. This time, I am growing wildflowers to create even more color options. I am especially excited about infusing the garments with calendula and using it as dye. What colors will result and will the pieces also smell amazing?  

Want to see some pieces that I dyed with avocado and oxalis, a weed that grows by the roadside here in Los Angeles? Keep on reading, to see all the beautiful plant colors and inspiration. Click below to receive my free botanical guide on how to get started dyeing with plants! 

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