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Isatis tinctoria

Common name: Woad Family: Cruciferae
Author: L. Botanical references: 17, 200
Synonyms: Isatis indigotica (Fortune.)
Known Hazards: None known
Range: C. and S. Europe. Naturalized in S. and C. England.
Habitat: Cliffs and cornfields, often on chalky soils[17, 200].
Edibility Rating (1-5): 2Medicinal Rating (1-5):3

Other Possible Synonyms:From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
I. indigotina[HORTIPLEX] Ivatis indigotica[H] Ivatis tinctoria[H]
Other Common Names:From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
Ban Lan Gen [E], Ch'Ing Tai [E], Dyer's Woad [P,L], Dyer's-woad [B], Tein-ching [H], Tien Hua [E], Wede [D], Woad [E,H,L],
Epithets:From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
tinctoria = used in dyeing
Systematics:From a USDA Plants Database
Order: Capparales. Renamed to Brassicaceae -- Mustard family
Other Range Info: From the Ethnobotany Database
Britain China Us
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious WeedsFrom USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
Listed as noxious/invasive for: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.

Physical Characteristics

Biennial/Perennial growing to 1m by 0.45m . It is hardy to zone 7 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to August, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 3/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline soil. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds, In Walls, In South Wall, In East Wall, In West Wall.

Edible Uses

Leaves.

Leaves - they require long soaking in order to remove a bitterness, and even then they are still bitter[177, 179].
There is no record of the seeds being edible, but they contain 12 - 34% protein and 12 - 38% fat on a zero moisture basis[218].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antibacterial Antiviral Astringent Cancer.

Woad has rather a mixed press for its medicinal virtues. One author says it is so astringent that it is not fit to be used internally - it is only used externally as a plaster applied to the region of the spleen and as an ointment for ulcers, inflammation and to staunch bleeding[4]. However, it is widely used internally in Chinese herbal medicine where high doses are often employed in order to maintain high levels of active ingredients[238].
The leaves are antibacterial, anticancer, antiviral, astringent and febrifuge[148, 176, 218, 238]. It controls a wide range of pathogenic organisms, including viruses[218, 238]. It is used internally in the treatment of a wide range of disorders, including meningitis, encephalitis, mumps, influenza, erysipelas, heat rash etc[238]. The leaves are harvested in the summer and can be used fresh or dried[238]. They are also macerated and the blue pigment extracted. This is also used medicinally, particularly in the treatment of high fevers and convulsions in children, coughing of blood and as a detoxifier in infections such as mumps[238].
The root is antibacterial and anticancer[176]. It is used in the treatment of fevers, pyogenic inflammation in influenza and meningitis, macula in acute infectious diseases, erysipelas, mumps and epidemic parotitis[176]. Its antibacterial action is effective against Bacillus subtilis, haemolytic streptococcus,, C. diphtheriae, E. coli, Bacillus typhi, B. paratyphi, Shigella dysenteriae, S. flexneri and Salmonella enteritidis[176].
Both the leaves and the roots are used in the treatment of pneumonia[218].
The root and the whole plant have anticancer properties whilst extracts of the plant have shown bactericidal properties[218].

We have a more details factsheet on the history and medicinal use of this plant. Email webmaster@pfaf.org for details.

Other Uses

Dye Preservative.

Woad is historically famous as a dye plant, having been used as a body paint by the ancient Britons prior to the invasion of the Romans[238]. A blue dye is obtained from the leaves by a complex process that involves fermenting the leaves and produces a foul stench[6, 14, 46, 57, 100, 238]. The dye is rarely used nowadays, having been replaced first by the tropical Indigofera tinctoria and more recently by synthetic substitutes[238]. Nevertheless, it is a very good quality dye that still finds some use amongst artists etc who want to work with natural dyes. A very good quality green is obtained by mixing it with Dyer's greenwood (Genista tinctoria)[238]. Woad is also used to improve the colour and quality of indigo, as well as to form a base for black dyes[244]. The leaves are harvested when fully grown and 3 - 4 harvests can be made in total[244].
Recent research in Germany has shown that (the dyestuff in?) this plant is a very good preservative for wood[Radio 4 Farming programme].

Cultivation details

An easily grown plant, it prefers a well-drained fertile soil in a sunny position[14], though it succeeds in ordinary garden soil[1]. Prefers neutral to alkaline conditions[238]. Plants deplete the soil of nutrients and cannot be grown successfully on the same site for more than two years[4].
Plants are hardy to about -15° c[200].
Woad is a biennial, or occasionally a short-lived perennial plant. It has a very long history as a dye plant, being used by the ancient Britons to give a blue colouring to the skin. At one time woad was widely cultivated for this blue dye obtained from its leaves but with the advent of chemical dyes it has fallen into virtual disuse[4]. It is currently (1993) being grown commercially on a small scale in Germany as a wood preservative (An item on BBC's Radio 4 Farming Programme).
Plants self-sow freely when they are grown in a suitable position[14], though they tend not to thrive if grown in the same position for more than two years[238].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in situ. Fresh seed can also be sown in situ in late summer, it will take 20 months to flower but will produce more leaves[169].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

References for Isatis indigotina (a possible synonym). References for Ivatis indigotica (a possible synonym).
  • [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
References for Ivatis tinctoria (a possible synonym).
  • [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
References for isatis tinctoria (a possible synonym).

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[6] Mabey. R. Plants with a Purpose. Fontana 1979 ISBN 0-00-635555-2
Details on some of the useful wild plants of Britain. Poor on pictures but otherwise very good.

[14] Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press 1979 ISBN 0-87857-262-7
A good herbal.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[100] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969 ISBN 0192176218
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.

[148] Niebuhr. A. D. Herbs of Greece. Herb Society of America. 1970
A pleasant little book about Greek herbs.

[169] Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden.
Covers all aspects of growing your own clothes, from fibre plants to dyes.

[176] Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, Los Angeles 1985
A very good Chinese herbal.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[179] Reid. B. E. Famine Foods of the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre 1977
A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[244] Phillips. R. & Foy. N. Herbs Pan Books Ltd. London. 1990 ISBN 0-330-30725-8
Deals with all types of herbs including medicinal, culinary, scented and dye plants. Excellent photographs with quite good information on each plant.

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