Cosmos sulphureus dye
An orange-yellow dye from the flowers of the Cosmos sulphureus plant
No single value: Cosmos sulphureus dye is a material, and its colour varies. The background shows its family, yellow.
Cosmos sulphureus dye is made from the flowers of a plant that grows wild from Mexico through parts of Central and South America. The dye gives an orange-yellow colour and has been used to colour wool since pre-Columbian times, later spreading to other regions including southern Africa.
- Used for orange-yellow dye since pre-Columbian times
- Flowers are edible in Indonesia and Thailand
- Popular in roadside plantings in Japan and Korea
- Declared invasive in parts of the United States
- Attracts butterflies, including monarchs
What colour is Cosmos sulphureus dye?
Cosmos sulphureus dye is drawn from the petals of a flowering plant in the sunflower family. The colour it produces ranges from orange-yellow to deeper orange, depending on the variety and method. The plant itself can grow quite tall and is known for its bright, daisy-like flowers. Its colour stands out for its warmth and clarity among yellow and orange dyes.
Where does Cosmos sulphureus dye come from?
The dye comes from Cosmos sulphureus, a plant first found in Mexico and nearby regions of Central and South America. Its use as a dye dates back to pre-Columbian times, when it was used to colour wool. The plant and its dye later spread to other continents, including Africa and Asia, through trade and cultivation.
How is Cosmos sulphureus dye made?
To make the dye, the flowers of Cosmos sulphureus are gathered and processed. The petals are boiled or soaked to release their colour, which is then used to dye wool and sometimes other fibres. The resulting shades depend on the flower variety and the dyeing method.
Where Cosmos sulphureus dye is used
This dye has mainly been used for colouring wool. In Indonesia, young shoots of the plant are eaten, and in Thailand, the flowers are added to salads or brewed as tea. The plant is also grown widely for its decorative flowers, especially in Japan and Korea, where it is planted along roadsides.
Yellow around the world
What the yellow family means from country to country.
Yellow is the colour of Golkar, the party that ruled through the Suharto years. Its banyan tree symbol sits on a yellow ground.
Politics and protestSource: GolkarOn New Year's Eve many people wear yellow underwear to bring money in the year ahead, and red to bring love.
Luck and prosperitySource: New Year's EveBasant, the spring kite festival of Lahore and the Punjab, is marked with yellow clothes, the colour of the mustard fields in flower.
Festival and celebrationJoySource: Basant (festival)Each day of the week has a colour, and Monday's is yellow. King Bhumibol and King Vajiralongkorn were both born on a Monday, so yellow is worn to honour the monarchy.
Royalty and powerLuck and prosperityPrideSource: Colors of the day in ThailandA yellow ribbon tied round a tree or pinned to a coat means someone is waiting for a loved one to come home. It spread during the Iran hostage crisis of 1979 to 1981.
Protection and healingLove and desireHopeSource: Yellow ribbonSchool buses across the country are painted one shade of yellow, agreed at a conference in 1939 because black lettering on it is easy to read in early morning light.
Protection and healingSource: School bus yellowShades and relatives of Cosmos sulphureus dye
Different cultivated types of Cosmos sulphureus produce flowers in a range of yellow, orange, and red shades. Some varieties are shorter and flower earlier, while others have larger or double blooms. The dye is sometimes confused with other yellow or orange plant dyes.
Questions people ask about Cosmos sulphureus dye
What colour does Cosmos sulphureus dye produce?
It gives an orange-yellow shade, which can vary in depth depending on the flower variety and dyeing process.
Where does the name Cosmos sulphureus come from?
The name refers to the plant species, which is known for its bright, sulphur-like yellow and orange flowers.
Where is this dye originally from?
The plant is native to Mexico and parts of Central and South America, where the dye was first used.
What is the dye made from?
The dye is made from the petals of the Cosmos sulphureus flower.
Is Cosmos sulphureus used for anything besides dye?
Yes, in Indonesia its shoots are eaten, and in Thailand the flowers are used in salads and teas.
Good reading and sources
- Cosmos sulphureus on WikipediaEncyclopedia
- More pictures on Wikimedia CommonsPictures
- Wikidata recordOpen data
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Cosmos sulphureus", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). Rang rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. The swatch is an approximation: named colours are not fixed standards, and every screen shows them a little differently. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-03.
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