To harvest, the Indigo is cut a few inches from the ground leaving the roots and some foliage on the plant.The harvestedIndigoplants are spread out on a tarp in the sun. Indigo was once a popular natural dye, providing the name to the color. Today it makes for an interesting ornamental plant and acts as a soil builder. After harvesting, the indigoplant is then mixed with water, and, after fermenting, it is “let…out of the Trempoire to the Batterie, where ‘tis beat till it granulates.”15 The trempoire and batterie... Indigoplants, indigo leaves fermenting into dye and freshly dyed indigo fabric.Credit...Bryan Denton for The New York Times. But the traditions have come under a different threat since... First, we take the indigoplant, which has many different species. The particular species Roland grows is Polygonum tinctorium. This species has responded favorably to our climate. Indigoplants can grow up to five feet tall and produce small purple and pink flowers. When the indigoplants have reached maturity, the leaves are ready for harvesting. Harvest to Factory: Post-harvest, the indigoplant was transported to the vats present in the indigo factory. The manufacturing process required three or four vats, each with a distinctive... Harvestingindigo fields in the early summer morning. Indigo field, a raw material for traditional Japanese indigo dyeing. When the indigoplant is ready, they are harvested by cutting them off and fermenting the leaves in a process that involves water, drying in the sun and the leaves turning hard. Making Sukumo / Composting Indigo Leaves. Three straw bags bursting full of indigo leaves have fermented in straw bags under wheat straw and oak leaves for two months now. Indigo tomatoes growing on a plant. Shallow depth of field with the nearest tomatoes in focus.RF2HJT351–Urban farmer harvesting Japanese Indigo. heart_plus. The plant needs full sun to partial shade with medium to dry soil, and does not bloom well in acidic soil (1). Blue wild indigo belongs to the plant family Fabaceae, also known as the pea family. The plant’s common name, Blue False Indigo, is a reference to the use of this plant as a substitute for true indigo to make blue dye. You may also hear the plant referred to as In her backyard in downtown Hamilton, Hitoko Okada is growing her own indigoplants, which she uses to create dyes in a way that originated in sixth-century Japan.
