Dyeing Continues
I've continued volunteering with the Friends of Sausal Creek , a habitat conservation group that works in my urban watershed. Once again, I pulled weeds for hours in the blazing sun. Once again, I came home with a car full of potential dye plants. And once again, it's a total miracle that I didn't get a horrible case of poison oak. This time I brought home young eucalyptus sprouts (which nobody could remember the Latin name of). A large part of this project is removing the invasive eucalyptus. Even after the trees have been cut down, and their stumps covered in a plastic tarp, the plant sends out fresh growth. It's strange to see such lush, soft leaves from eucalyptus trees. Typically, I think of these leaves as very woody. I simmered these leaves and shoots for several hours, and they produced a lovely orange-brown color. It's odd, because the last time I dyed with eucalyptus , I got a more terra-cotta flowerpot orange color. I won