Foraging For Dye Supplies - Is It Sustainable?
I teach an eight month online course on foraging for natural dye materials (The Seasonal Natural Dyer). Also, in my Module 1: Foundations and Module 2: Colour, there are lessons on exploring local natural dye history and forageable materials. Like everything about my fibre arts practice, and how I live my life generally, deep ecology is at the heart of my approach.
This blog post is a long read…
What Is ‘Deep Ecology’?
Marine biologist Rachel Carson’s 1962 book, Silent Spring, is often seen as catalyzing the modern deep ecology movement, which recognizes the inherent worth of all species, irrespective of whether humans have found some practical use for them or not. Deep ecology promotes a value system based on understanding that humans are just one strand in an incredibly complex web of life, rather than the destructive hierarchical delusion that humans are more important than all other living beings. Realizing our interconnectedness to everything else in the universe encourages us to endeavour to live in accordance with the ecological needs of our life-supporting biosphere, rather than extracting and exploiting without thought to the consequence of pulling too hard on some of the threads of the overall web that allows us to exist in the first place.
The evidence is overwhelming that many strands of our web of life, billions of years in the making, are currently rapidly unraveling - climate change, loss of biodiversity, deforestation, the 6th great mass extinction, water pollution and scarcity, plastic pollution, etc.
Does foraging contribute to these challenges, or can it do the exact opposite - create individuals and communities in love with Nature and with the passion and will to protect biodiversity?
The Commons
Our ancestors were gatherers and hunters for millions of years before most peoples settled into agricultural societies some ten to five thousand years ago. So foraging for sustenance, fibres, dyes, medicines, building materials, firewood, turf, etc. has a very deep history for our species in all parts of the world. Even in recent centuries, in many societies foraging is seen as an integral part of the Commons - the deeply historical cultural and economic notion of essential resources - such as air, water, plants, grazing land, etc. - being the common resource and responsibility of a community, and not subject to being made into private property. In a world in which so many natural resources, and so much land and water, is controlled by a small number of individuals and corporations, it is worth keeping alive the ancient, global, democratic values of the Commons approach to community-based natural resource stewardship.
Can natural dyers organize into local communities of land stewards, engaged in deep conservation and protection work, while creating beautiful colour for fibres?
Regional Context
Click on the image to access the source data.
Nowadays, while we enjoy connections with people around the world through travel and social media, we live in regionally specific ecosystems, that have evolved over billions of years and been subject to variable human activities. In Canada, where I live, 27% of the land is above the tree line (i.e. on land incompatible with the growth of trees), and over 40% of the total land area is still covered with forest (equivalent to 55% of the land below the tree line). Our population is approximately 38 million. By contrast in the UK, for example, even though nearly all land is suitable for woodlands, forests/woodland account for only 13% of total land mass, and the population is almost twice that of Canada’s. In addition, each region of the Earth is blessed with flora and fauna found nowhere else, and with regionally unique ecological pressures.
Also, the cultural context for land use varies from region to region. No-one in Europe or Australasia, for example, has any right to presume that their foraging best practices are applicable to how the First Nations of Canada live in relationship to Mother Earth.
While there are certainly principles of responsible foraging applicable around the world (more on this below), what foraging land stewardship best practices will be applicable in different locations to reflect unique regional ecological, cultural, and social contexts? How can local communities cultivate an active, reciprocal relationship with their local ecosystems?
Defining Foraging
Some of my foraged colour - from firewood, windfall, and tree trimming.
Foraging is the collection of uncultivated materials. If you intentionally planted something and collect part/all of that plant, you are harvesting. If you didn’t plant something and collect part/all of it, you are foraging - regardless of whether that uncultivated plant is in your own garden or elsewhere. So foraging isn’t just about collecting from wild places, but can include public parks, roadsides, the gardens of family and friends, and your own garden, should you be lucky enough to have one.
If you collect uncultivated (by you) material from someone else’s private property without permission, or from protected places - such as conservation areas, protected county/state/provincial/national parks, or sacred Indigenous sites - you are not foraging, but are stealing and desecrating.
Laws and regulations about foraging vary from country to country and region to region, so it is the forager’s responsibility to educate themself about, and abide by, their particular local regulatory context.
Natural Dyeing & Botanical Printing
Lobaria pulmonaria lichen on trees on my property.
I am unaware of any evidence-based research to date that seeks to quantify the actual, or potential, ecological impact (positive or negative) of foraging for natural dyes. There is anecdotal historic information on the ecologically devastating impact of foraging of some lichen species for commercial dye purposes (not personal use), particularly in Scotland, and particularly in the 19th century. Lichens are especially sensitive communities of organisms, much more vulnerable to atmospheric toxins because they lack roots, so can not benefit from the filtering/cleansing function that soil provides to plant roots, for example. So lichens absorb nutrients through atmospheric moisture, along with any toxins in that water. Current significant threats to lichen include habitat loss, climate change, and pollution from industrial activity (which can travel enormous distances). Most knowledgeable natural dyers that I know, along with myself, tend to advise against the foraging and use of lichens for dyeing for the ecological reasons noted above, and because most colours can readily be obtained from less vulnerable, more renewable plant sources.
Purchasing Natural Dyes:
If we prefer to not forage, but to purchase natural dyes, we have to recognize that there is an environmental impact of the latter, too.
Somewhere in the world, rich native ecosystems have been cleared to create farmland for the cultivation of natural dyes for a growing global market. Of course, there are dye farms that seek to use sustainable agricultural methods, engage in carbon capture farming practices, etc. But, in my experience, it tends to be local, small scale dye farms that have the greatest transparency around their farming practices (please look for, and support, your local organic dye growers). The larger natural dye suppliers, who ship product globally, tend to be quite opaque about the farming and labour practices that produce the dyes they sell, or the mining/manufacturing processes that produce the mordants, assists, and modifiers they sell. They may make claims about sustainable agriculture and/or fair trade practices, but I have yet to find an independent, third party verification of such claims.
In addition, the packaging and shipping of natural dye supplies long distances around the world adds greenhouse gasses to our atmosphere.
Of course, purchasing some natural dye supplies from select global suppliers can also have positive socio-economic and ecological effects. An example of this is the forest stewardship work being done by the Bebali Foundation in Indonesia to find markets for a traditional forest source of plant-accumulated alum. This creates an economic incentive to preserve native forest ecosystems, while providing dignified, fairly paid work for local communities.
Also, there are classic natural dye materials that can’t be grown everywhere. A natural dyer in Kyiv or Nairobi, for example, would have a hard time trying to grow the Opuntia cacti needed for cochineal cultivation, due to climactic constraints, or because the species is an invasive there, and so should not be grown. So for dyers who want to work with particular dyes, purchasing may be the only option in that specific case. But again, we then become accountable for the ecological impacts of the choices we make.
Growing our own NATURAL DYES:
When we grow our own dye materials, we have complete control of the process to ensure that toxic pesticides/herbicides are not used. There is also no packaging or shipping carbon footprint, other than when purchasing seed for the first time.
We also gain a much more intimate understanding of the plants and how they interact with our garden ecosystem, and we gain the significant physical and mental health benefits of caring for a garden.
However, some land is required and this is a privilege not everyone enjoys. Most people now live in urban environments, and in increasingly intensified residential settings with little access to sufficient land to grow dye materials. I do have friends who grow some dye material in pots on apartment balconies, but the quantity of dye material produced is generally only sufficient for a very few dye sessions each year.
Some of my plastic-free botanical printing.
Botanical Printing:
In my experience, botanical printers, in particular, unless they have a large property with many different species, very quickly venture further afield in search of leaves and other plant material that can produce interesting surface design effects. In other words, they are often some of the most intensive foragers, particularly as it is very common to only use the plant material once - unlike a natural dyer, who may dye multiple rounds of fibres to fully exhaust a dye bath.
I once observed a botanical printer’s workshop, which included not one single word about ecological considerations. Students arrived at each day’s class with armloads of plant material, including entire branches that had been ripped - not carefully trimmed - from trees on private property. At the end of each day, there was a mountain of used plastic barrier material that went straight into the landfill (and, therefore, straight into the air, oceans, and our bloodstream. The OECD has found that only 9% of all plastic worldwide is ever recycled, despite marketing claims to the contrary. Even supposed ‘compostable plastic’ isn’t.
While efforts are being made in countries around the world to eliminate various sources of plastic pollution, it is utterly confounding that there are people who refer to themselves as ‘eco’printers who have opted - in the 21st century, and with everything we know about the life-annihilating impact of plastic pollution - to intentionally create a new source of plastic pollution, through the use of plastic sheets as a barrier (a barrier, in this context, is used to prevent bleed-through or ghosting effects from plant material on other sections of the cloth, as a bundle is rolled against itself in preparation for steaming).
There are groups on Facebook devoted to botanical printing where members are forbidden to even discuss the ecological ethics/lack thereof of the use of plastic barriers, thus enforcing a culture of silence around one of the most pressing ecological crises of our time.
There are, of course, some botanical print practitioners and teachers who thankfully don’t use plastic, and who understand and promote an environmental stewardship ethic. But for those who aren’t immersed in this technique, and don’t belong to the many Facebook groups devoted to it, there is a lack of understanding of just how widespread ecologically harmful methods are that are being used by those claiming to engage in ‘eco’printing. People see the pretty results and, because plant material was involved in the surface design, assume it’s de facto a natural or sustainable process. So, there is a gamut of ecological issues that need to be addressed amongst this relatively new group of surface designers using plant material to extract dyes and tannins directly onto cloth, rather than via the more historic dye bath approach.
Foraging To Cultivate A Reciprocal Relationship With Nature
I have left several online foraging groups because the group admins were completely MIA and did not articulate any ethics regarding foraging practices. As a result, individual members struggled to educate those only interested in exploiting natural resources, often for commercial reasons (such as foraging for species in demand at high end restaurants). The ethical, educated members would end up being remorselessly attacked by the exploiters and hounded out of the group, resulting in even fewer voices to offer thoughts on responsible practices. So there is a real issue with some people who bring only a consumerist, exploitative interest to the practice of foraging. Particularly in regards to the most fragile ecosystems, and the protection of threatened species, legal prohibitions/limitations on foraging have an important role to play.
Bans on foraging exist already in many countries and regions. In the UK, for example, foraging plants for commercial purposes (which would include plant material used in botanical printing of items for sale, or for use in paid workshops) is technically illegal under the Theft Act. I doubt very much whether many UK based botanical printers are even aware of this: “A person who picks mushrooms growing wild on any land, or who picks flowers, fruit or foliage from a plant growing wild on any land, does not (although not in possession of the land) steal what he picks, unless he does it for reward or for sale or other commercial purpose.”
However, there is also some evidence that knowledgeable foragers can have a positive ecological effect on their local ecosystem. Studies have shown that knowledgeable foragers often augment formal stewardship organizations, by identifying, reporting, and removing invasive species from wild spaces, and by identifying, reporting, and protecting rare or threatened native species.
In addition, there is an extensive body of literature that shows a direct correlation between nature-connectedness and support for the protection of wild places (e.g. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0127247; https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01490400590930853; https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11625-018-0542-9). In other words, the more interactive time we spend in Nature (this does not include cultivated gardens), the more likely we are to be actively involved in the protection of wild places and biodiversity, and to actively resist their destruction.
The main variables that seem to determine whether someone engages with foraging, and Nature in general, from a place of love and desire to protect our biosphere, are time spent in Nature and education about ecology. Prohibiting people from learning to identify useful plants in the wild, and how to responsibly forage them, leads to decreased engagement with Nature, devaluing of the importance of wild places and biodiversity, lost opportunity to identify and remove invasives that threaten local native flora and fauna, the loss of a lived experience of ourselves as one part of, rather than separate from, wildness, and the death of hard won ancestral skills.
But given that interest in all kinds of foraging has been increasing in recent years while wild spaces have been decreasing, there is definitely a need for much more research to provide a greater body of scientific evidence of good and bad impacts, best practices, etc.
Models for Sustainable Natural Dye Material Foraging?
On the west coast of Canada, there is an organization known as the EartHand Gleaners Society. It fosters important conversations and other learning about foraging ethics and practices, and works in close collaboration with First Nations and other stewards to teach and practice ecological arts/crafts. One of their initiatives involves collaborating with an ecological society on the restoration of the native temperate rainforest ecosystem in Stanley Park, a 400 hectare haven in the heart of Vancouver, British Columbia. Guided by conservation/ecology experts, regular forays are held to identify and remove invasive species from the park, and then artists/craftspeople lead workshops to teach people how to use the invasive plant material in basketry and other arts/crafts. This model could be easily adapted to many regions around the world, where natural dyers could foster collaborations with local ecology/conservation organizations to work together on preserving local native ecosystems through the safe removal of invasive species that are useful dye (and/or other craft) materials. There are likely similar ecological arts initiatives in other parts of the world.
Additionally, if you have a wood stove or a garden, there are almost daily opportunities to forage natural dye materials sustainably.
I often remove the bark from firewood to use as dye/tannin. The lion’s share of the log is left behind to use in my wood stove (and don’t forget to save your ashes, which provide a very strong alkali).
The branches/twigs from trimming shrubs and trees are also often useful sources of dyes/tannins.
Storms often create windfall (fallen leaves and branches). This is part of Nature’s cycle, so it’s good to allow some windfall to perform necessary ecological functions in replenishing soil nutrients, preserving soil water through natural mulching, etc. However, if you have no forested areas to put your windfall, or the volume is very high, this can also be a rich source of dyes/tannins.
Another option for providing flora for natural dye foraging is to re-wild spaces with native species. Re-wild your garden, your allotment, your roadsides, etc. Some of the concern about pressures that foraging might present can be addressed by increasing the ratio of naturalized spaces to population.
Some Thoughts on Principles
For anyone who is a member of my group, Natural Dye Education, you may recognize the image on the left as being part of the responsible practice guidelines pinned to the top of the group, in the Featured section. They are necessarily brief in that context, but I have expanded on them below. My objective in creating these guidelines a couple of years ago was to provide guard rails that are transferrable to natural dyers in any region of the world, rather than trying to be so prescriptive that they end up being unusable in some locations. These principles are consistent with those promoted by conservation organizations world-wide, and the global Association of Foragers (link provided below under Suggested Further Reading).
Ground natural dye foraging in reciprocity - in other words, in larger ecological protection/restoration objectives by working collaboratively with local ecology/conservation organizations.
Know your specific bioregion. Learn about your native flora and fauna. Learn which species are endangered, and learn which introduced species have become problematic invasives.
Know your local laws and regulations. Always respect local rules. Don’t give foragers a bad name.
Learn about the natural dye related properties of local invasive species. Learn if it is possible to harvest part/all of an invasive species in a way that does not cause further ecological harm (for example, seeds of some invasive species are so easily airborne that seedheads should be bagged and disposed of before transporting or using the plant material).
The amount of material you forage should be in inverse proportion to the number of people foraging in a particular area. In my teaching, I advise students to never forage more than 5% (1 in 20) - of the leaves on a given plant, the plants in a given secure community, etc. But if you are foraging in an area where others are likely foraging, too, then this percentage should be reduced accordingly. This rule does not apply to invasives, where 100% can be removed, if it is possible to do so safely. Avoid foraging lichen at all, but if you do, only use windfall.
Educate yourself. Never forage anything unless you can accurately identify it in situ, know that it is not protected/threatened, know that it is safe to remove it, understand its life cycle and its ecological functions and what impact removal will have, and already know its natural dye related properties.
So, Can Natural Dye Foraging Be Sustainable?
In many places around the world, yes, I believe so. But only when those doing the foraging are knowledgeable about their local bioregion and its flora and fauna, and have native ecosystem restoration/expansion goals beyond just the acquisition of natural dye related materials. As noted above, though, there is a lot of scope for evidence-based research on the various potential impacts (good and bad) of natural dye foraging in different parts of the world. Working collaboratively with scientists on such research is another opportunity for natural dyers. As someone with a science policy background, I am always prepared to change my views when new evidence suggests I should.
So given that education underpins responsible and sustainable foraging, I choose to teach these skills. If people are going to forage, I aim to help them do so from a place of wisdom - with an understanding of deep ecology, of responsible stewardship, and of cultivating the lived interactions with the natural world that research evidence to date clearly shows leads to people who more actively engage in protection of our life-sustaining biosphere.