After reading about the experiments of Catharine Ellis
here
I was inspired to do some playing of my own
But I was reluctant to use food I could eat
so I found my source in the scrap/compost bin
I used
Banana Skins
Orange peel
Carrot Peel
& Sweet Potato Peel
All were treated the same way
Brought to boil and simmered 30 mins
Then plant matter removed
liquid reduced by
half
Removed from heat
allowed to cool a little
1 teaspoon indigo and a little meths
in a jar
Swirl to dissolve
Add cooled juice
(it still wants to be quite warm)
And 2 teaspoons lime
Shake jar vigorously and place in the sun
Jars in the Sun
The fabrics used
1. knitted linen, beige
2. Knitted cotton, white
3. Silk Cotton Blend, pale green
Banana Skins
while they worked they were not wildly successful
Carrot Peel
Much Better
Orange Peel
on a par with the carrot
Orange Sweet Potato Peel
This dropped right off in the last test
I don't know if this is inherent to the material
or whether it was a slightly cooler day
and this was the largest jar
and just didn't get warm enough
or possibly there wasn't as much peel to begin with
Maybe it needs to be repeated
with exactly the same weight
of plant material to begin with
But someone else can do that
I will definitely find a place in my freezer
for a few peelings
of carrot, orange and sweet potato
to feed future indigo pots
and forego trying to find
the fructose
I also hope to continue the experiments
once I have a vegie garden happening
with a glut
But I do wonder how capsicum cores would go
and would purple carrot skins make a difference?
x te
