International Research Journal of Biological Sciences ___________________________________ ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 3(12), 73-79, December (2014) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 73 Herbal Dye Yielding Plants of District Kathua, Jammu And Kashmir State, India Jarngal Nidhi and Katoch K. Nitan Department of Botany, University of Jammu, Jammu, J and K, INDIAAvailable online at: www.isca.in, www.isca.me Received 22nd September 2014, revised 29th October 2014, accepted 14th November 2014Abstract District Kathua laying at 32-17’ N to 32-55’ N latitude and 75-7’ E to 74-10’ E longitude is known as gateway of JandK and exhibit marked variation in topography coupled with altitudinal range and climate. The area is characterised by varied type of vegetation. Survey of literature revealed that work has been done on ethno botany and plant diversity of Jammu and Kashmir as well as the study area but enlisting of dye yielding plantshas been done for one district only. Therefore the purpose of the present study was to document the dye yielding plant species and associated knowledge from the study area. 64 dye yielding plant species belonging to 43 families were reported from the study area. The correct identity of reported plant species along family, vernacular name, habit and part used has been documented in the present work. A wealth of plant resources for natural dyes exists in the study area but most of it is underutilised. Present work is aimed to open new ways for future studies on various aspects of reported taxa and initiate extensive exploration in other districts of the state. Keywords: Dye yielding plants, Kathua, Ethnobotany, Herbal dye. Introduction Herbal dyeing in an ancient and attractive practice, full of surprises, as you never know what colour you are going to get. It depends on the freshness and concentration of pigments in plant materials. Plant parts used in the preparation of dyes include leaves, bark, fruits, roots, rhizomes, wood, seeds, gum and sometimes whole of the plant is used for the extraction. The earliest surviving evidence of herbal dyeing comes from a 5,000 years old piece of cloth coloured with madder (Rubiacordifolia) discovered at Mohenjodaro. About 1500 plant taxa are used for dyeing in the world and nearly 150 dye yielding plants have been able to compete with synthetic dyes. The ethnic groups inhabiting different areas of the state have evolved various methods for utilising the available plant resources as colouring agents. Organic dyeing is safer as researchers have reported the release of harmful chemicals that are injurious to human health from synthetic dyes and this has led to an increased interest of people in herbal dyes and their awareness for health and environmental concerns associated with synthetic dyes. Significant work has been done on ethno botany in the state but dye yielding plants of only one district have been reported so far except a few casual references2,3. Many workers have studied various aspects of ethno botany and plant diversity of Jammu and Kashmir4-25. The present work is first comprehensive account of the herbal dye yielding plants of the study area and it is an attempt to gather information on traditional knowledge system associated with use of natural dyes by Gujjar, Bakerwal andGaddi tribes and others in the study area. Material and Methods District kathua, the gateway of Jammu and Kashmir state is bounded by Gurdaspur district of Punjab in south, Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh in east, Doda, Udhampur and Samba districts in North and Pakistan in west. The district lies between 32-17’ N to 32-55’ N latitude and 75-7’ E to 7410’ E longitude covering an area of 2651 sq. km. with altitude ranging from 244m in plains to 4700m in higher reaches of Bani. District kathua comprises of 5 tehsils and 8 blocks. The present communication is an outcome of extensive survey of district Kathua undertaken during 2010 to 2013. Survey was conducted in all the tehsils including remote tribal villages and forests occupied by GujjarBakerwal tribes. Experienced elderly community members, gujjars, bakkarwals, livestock rearers were interviewed for their detailed valuable knowledge on specific plants used in traditional colouring practices. The information collected was systematically documented and analysed. The plant material was collected, dried and was used for making voucher specimen deposited with Herbarium Department of Botany, University of Jammu. Results and Discussion 64 plant species belonging to 60 genera and 43 families were reported from the study area. Ceasalpiniaceae was the most dominant with 4 dye yielding plant species, followed by Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae, Malvaceae, Rosaceae and Solanaceae with 3 dye yielding species and Anacardiaceae, Asteraceae, Combretaceae, Lythraceae, Mimosaceae, Moraceae, Myrtaceae Research Journal of Chemical Sciences ______ Vol. 3(12), 73-79, December (2014) International Science Congress Association and Rutaceae with 2 species each. All the remaining families were represented by a single species. Leaves of 18 plant fruits of 19 plant species, bark of 17 plant species, flowers of 12 plant species, roots of 7 plant species, seeds of 4 plant species, wood of 2 plant species and rhizome of one plant species were found in use as source of colouring materials. Th Dye yielding plant part representation Habit of the dye 02Whole PlantFruitLeafBarkFlowerRootSeedWoodRhizomeGum  ______ _________________________________ ______________ Int. Res. International Science Congress Association and Rutaceae with 2 species each. All the remaining families were represented by a single species. Leaves of 18 plant species, fruits of 19 plant species, bark of 17 plant species, flowers of 12 plant species, roots of 7 plant species, seeds of 4 plant species, wood of 2 plant species and rhizome of one plant species were found in use as source of colouring materials. Th ere were 25 species with more than one plant part in use. Trees (31) were found to be most dominant taxa, followed by herbs (16), shrubs(14) and climbers (3). Most of the families were of class dicotyledons (36), followed by monocotyledons (5) and gymnosperms (2). Figure-1 Dye yielding plant part representation Figure-2 Habit of the dye -yielding plant species in district Kathua, JandK 46810121416  ______________ __ ISSN 2231-606X Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. 74 species with more than one plant part in use. Trees (31) were found to be most dominant taxa, followed by herbs (16), shrubs(14) and climbers (3). Most of the families were of class dicotyledons (36), followed by monocotyledons (5) and 1820 Tree Herb Shrub Climber Research Journal of Chemical Sciences _______________________________________________________ ISSN 2231-606X Vol. 3(12), 73-79, December (2014) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 75 Figure-3 Family wise representation of dye yielding Taxa of district Kathua Local people of the study area are engaged in extraction, processing and preparation of natural dyes using plant parts like leaves, fruits, bark, flowers and rhizomes etc. Most of the rural people use crude methods for extraction of dye. They prefer to dye yarn by boiling flowers, bark, wood or rhizomes in water. Dried flowers and fruits are used to prepare colours for decorating walls of their houses. Flowers of Wood fordiafructicosa are boiled to get a Red-yellow dye which is used for colouring ropes made up of Crotolariajuncea. Most of the people prefer Mehandi (Lawsoniainermis L.) as hair dye and for colouring hands in wedding ceremonies instead of synthetic ones. Paste of Haldi (Cucurma longa) is applied in wedding rituals to colour the couple. Festival Holi was played with natural colours in ancient times and even now they are preferred over synthetic colours due to their eco-friendly nature. To extract dye from roots, stem or bark, the plant material is crushed, soaked in water for 36 hours and then boiled. After filtration the extract is concentrated by repeated heating. The floral parts and leaves when used for dye are crushed and dissolved in water for 2 days followed by heating to concentrate the solution and in case of fruits, juice is obtained by squeezing andwater is added. The solution is then kept in iron vessel for 2-3 days to obtain the dye after filtration. In one indigenous dye extraction process fresh flowers of Buteamonosperma are washed and placed in water. 2 tablespoon of turmeric powder is also added. Flowers are dipped in the same water for 72 hours. The whole content is gently heated to concentrate the solution. The mixture is then filtered by using cotton cloth, the exudate act as a dye for colouring textile. In another process leaves of Adathodavasica and Morusalba are dried for two days (not sun dried). They are crushed and put in an earthen pot to which water is added. The pot is kept as such for 5 days. The content is then boiled to get a thick liquid and extract is filtered by using a cloth or sieve to yield natural dye. A little vinegar is added later on which act as mordant. In yet another process dried fruits of Emblicaofficinalis and Sapindustrifoliatus are mixed in equal proportions and finely crushed. This solution is then boiled for long hours. The boiled mixture is then filtered. The collected thick black liquid act as hair care dye. It makes the hair look black and shiny. Fruits of   Acanthaceae Amaranthaceae Apocynaceae Berberidaceae Bombacaceae Ceasalpiniaceae Chenopodiaceae Commelinaceae Euphorbiaceae Fagaceae Juglandaceae Liliaceae Malvaceae Mimosaceae Myrtaceae Pinaceae Poaceae Rhamnaceae Rutaceae Taxaceae Urticaceae Zingiberaceae Research Journal of Chemical Sciences _______________________________________________________ ISSN 2231-606X Vol. 3(12), 73-79, December (2014) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 76 Terminaliachebula and bark of Terminaliaarjuna is dried, crushed and boiled to obtain a black dye used for colouring textiles, ropes and mats etc. The inhabitants of study area exhibit variety of dye yielding resources and usage pattern. Use of dyes in various fabrics, food, beverages, rituals and festivals reflects close affinities of local people with the dyeing art. In recent times herbal dyes have increased their demands and there is an urgent need to promote production of natural dyes. Dye resources could be supportive to concerned industries and to the rural folk as well. An enumeration of the reported dye yielding plant species including family name, vernacular name, habit, part used and colour produced is given in table 1. Conclusion Dye yielding plants are of considerable interest on account of their multiuse potential and environmental friendly nature. A treasure of dye yielding plant diversity exists in Jammu and Kashmir but region wise mapping of the available plant diversity has not been done so far. It is the need of hour to rely on herbal dyes and replace synthetic dyes completely to save environment and ecology of our fragile habitats. The attraction of natural dyes has been increasing despite of many difficulties in procuring the plant resources, colouring defects and requirement of mordant's. Industrialists and local forest dwellers both can contribute in this venture by joining hands. Various types of mordant’s like lemon juice, sugar solution, animal urine, wood ash and vinegar etc. are used by locals to develop a bond between the dye and material to be coloured. The traditional knowledge related to dye yielding plants is confined only to the surviving elderly community members and only few of them pass it to next generation. No serious attempts have been made in J and K to document and preserve traditional knowledge confined with the indigenous people and it is high time to rescue them from being lost forever. Commercialisation of some of the natural dyes can be helpful to rural people of the state for enhancing their economy through systematic approaches and scientific inputs for proper utilisation and conservation of dye yielding plant resources. References 1.Mahanta D. and Tiwari S.C., Natural dye-yielding plants and indigenous knowledge on dye preparation in Arunanchal Pradesh, northeast India, Curr. 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No. Botanical Name Vernacular Name Habit Dye yielding plant part Colour produced Acanthaceae 1 AdathodavasicaNees. Brainkad Shrub Leaves Green Alliaceae 2 Allium cepaL. Ganda, Piyaz Herb Leaves, Fruit Yellow, Brown, Bright Red Amaranthaceae 3 Achyranthesaspera L. Puthkanda Herb Whole plant Black Anacardiaceae 4 Lanneacoromandelica (Houtt.) Merr. Kaimbla Tree Bark,Resin Yellow-Brown 5 MangiferaindicaL.Amb Tree Bark, Leaves Black Apocynaceae 6 Neriumindicum Mill. Lalgandira Shrub Roots, Bark Black Asteraceae 7 Tageteserecta L. Genda Herb Flowers Yellow 8 Tagetesminuta L. Bann Gutti Herb Flowers Yellow Berberidaceae 9 BerberislyciumRoyle. Kavelli Shrub Roots Yellow Betulaceae 10 Betulautilis D. Don Burj Tree Tree gum Brown Bombacaceae 11 Bombaxceiba L. Simbal Tree Flowers Red Brassicaceae 12 Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata L. Gobhi Herb Leaves Pink Ceasalpiniaceae 13 Bauhinia variegata L. Kaliyad Tree Flowers Purple 14 Cassia fistula L. Karongal Tree Bark, Pods Brown, Black 15 Cassia tora L. Loki Haedma Shrub Seeds Black 16 Tamarindus indicaL.Imbli Tree Leaves, Pods Reddish-yellow Cassuarinaceae 17 CassuarinaequisitifoliaForst. Jahbuko Tree Bark Light Reddish Chenopodiaceae 18 Beta vulgaris L. Chakundar Herb Roots Red Combretaceae 19 Terminaliaarjuna (Roxb. ex DC.) Arjan Tree Bark Light brown 20 Termaniliabellirica (Gaerth.) Roxb. Bahera Tree Fruits Blue Commelinaceae 21 Commelinabenghalensis L. Churra Herb Leaves, Flower Blue Datiscaceae 22 Datiscacannabina L. Bujr pang Shrub Roots Yellowish- red Euphorbiaceae 23 EmblicaofficinalisGearth. Amla Tree Fruit, Bark Dark red 24 Euphorbia helioscopia L. Doodhli Herb Whole plant Yellow 25 Mallotusphilippensis (Lam.) Muell- Arg. Kameela Tree Fruits Red-orange Fabaceae 26 Abrus precatorius L. Ratti Climber Seeds Black 27 Buteamonosperma (Lam.) Kuntze Palah Tree Flowers Yellow-orange 28 Indigofera tinctoria L. Neeli Shrub Leaves, Pods Indigo Fagaceae 29 Quercusleucotrichophora A. Camus. Rhien Tree Bark Yellowish brown Research Journal of Chemical Sciences _______________________________________________________ ISSN 2231-606X Vol. 3(12), 73-79, December (2014) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 78 S. No. Botanical Name Vernacular Name Habit Dye yielding plant part Colour produced Geraniaceae 30 Geranium napalense Sweet Banda Herb Root Red Juglandaceae 31 Juglansregia L. Akhrot Tree Bark, Unripe fruits Brown, Black Lamiaceae 32 Menthalongifolia (L.) Hudson JangliPutna Herb Whole plant Dark Green Liliaceae 33 Aloe barbedensis Mill. Kawargandal Herb Whole plant Red Lythraceae 34 Lawsoniainermis L. Mehndi Shrub Leaves Yellow-orange 35 Woodfordiafructicosa (L.) Kurz. Dhai Shrub Flower, Leaves Red-yellow Malvaceae 36 AlcearoseaL. Gulkhaida Herb Flowers Red 37 Hibiscus rosasinensis Gulhar Shrub Flowers Red 38 Morus alba L. Toot Tree Leaves Yellow Meliaceae 39 Toonaciliata M. Roem Tunu Tree Flower, Seed, Leaves Yellow, Red Mimosaceae 40 Acacia catechu (L.f.) Willd. Khair Tree Bark, Wood Dark brown 41 Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. Ex Del. Babool Tree Fruit rind, gum Black Moraceae 42 Artrocarpusheterophyllus Lam. Kathal Tree Fruits, Wood Yellow 43 FicusreligiosaL. Pipal Tree Bark Reddish, Pale brown Myrtaceae 44 Psidiumguajava L. Amrood Tree Fruits Black-brown 45 Syzgiumcuminii (L.) Skeels Tallan Tree Bark, Fruits Black, Purple Oxalidaceae 46 Oxalis corniculata L. Imbli Herb Leaves, Flower Yellow, Orange, Red, Brown Pinaceae 47 Pinuswallichiana A.B. Jackson Kail Tree Bark Black Piperaceae 48 Piper betle L. Paan Leaves, Root Blue Poaceae 49 Hordeumvulgare L. Joun Shrub Leaves Yellow, Red Punicaceae 50 PunicagranatumL. Anaar Tree Flower, Fruit Yellow-red, Deep blue, Black Rhamnaceae 51 Zizipusjujuba Mill. Barie Tree Fruit Reddish pink Rosaceae 52 PrinsepiautilisRoyle. Bekkra, Cherara Shrub Fruit Deep purple 53 PrunuspersicaBatsch Aaru Tree Leaves, Bark, Fruit Grey, Green, Yellow 54 Pyruspashia Nashpati Tree Fruit Black Rutaceae 55 Aegelemormilos (L.) Correa ex Roxb. Bael Tree Fruit Yellow 56 Citrus medica L. Kimb Tree Bark Blue Solanaceae 57 Capsicum annum L. Mirch Shrub Leaves, Fruit Yellow, Red 58 Nicotianatabaccum L. Tambaku Herb Leaves Green, Brown Research Journal of Chemical Sciences _______________________________________________________ ISSN 2231-606X Vol. 3(12), 73-79, December (2014) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 79 S. No. Botanical Name Vernacular Name Habit Dye yielding plant part Colour produced 59 Solanumnigrum L. Kayankothi Herb Seed Black Taxaceae 60 TaxusbaccataL. Barmi Tree Bark Red Thymeliaceae 61 Daphne papyracea Wall. Ex Stend. Muhtattasangulu Shrub Bark, Fruits Dark Red Urticaceae 62 UrticadioecaL. Bichubutti Shrub Roots Brown, Black Vitaceae 63 Vitisvinifera L. 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