Sap green
A green once made from buckthorn berries, now usually synthetic
Sap green is a green pigment that originally came from ripe buckthorn berries and alum. Today, most paints called sap green are blends of modern pigments, often using Phthalocyanine Green G as a base, and it is known for its use in painting instruction.
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- Originally made from ripe buckthorn berries and alum
- Modern sap green is usually synthetic
- Often based on Phthalocyanine Green G
- Favoured for painting foliage and landscapes
What colour is Sap green?
Sap green is a medium green pigment, recognised for its natural, plant-like appearance. It stands out from other greens by its softer, earthy tone, which artists often choose for painting foliage and landscapes. The colour is neither too bright nor too dull, making it a versatile choice for blending and layering in artwork.
Where does Sap green come from?
The name sap green comes from its original source: the juice of ripe buckthorn berries, which was mixed with alum to create the pigment. Over time, the traditional method has been replaced, and the name now refers to a specific green shade rather than its original ingredients.
How is Sap green made?
Historically, sap green was produced by extracting colour from ripe buckthorn berries and combining it with alum. In current practice, manufacturers use mixtures of synthetic pigments to achieve a similar green, with Phthalocyanine Green G often forming the main component.
Where Sap green is used
Sap green is a popular choice among artists, especially for painting natural scenes. It is well known for its use in painting tutorials and instructional programmes, where it helps depict realistic greens in landscapes and foliage.
Green around the world
What the green family means from country to country.
A green kerchief is the sign of the campaign for legal abortion. Huge crowds wore it in 2018, and the movement was called the green wave.
Politics and protestHopeSource: Green scarfGreen and gold have been the official national colours since 1984 and are worn by national sports teams. They echo the leaves and flowers of the golden wattle.
Festival and celebrationPrideSource: National colours of AustraliaA Test cricketer is given a dark green cap, the baggy green, on first playing for Australia. Many players wear the same faded cap for a whole career.
Festival and celebrationPrideSource: Baggy greenThe green field of the flag stands for the land and its rice fields. Many people also read it as the youth and vigour of the country.
Nature and renewalPolitics and protestHopeSource: Flag of BangladeshThe flag is white, green and red. The green band, which took the place of the blue in the Russian flag, is read as the country's forests and farmland.
Politics and protestNature and renewalSource: Flag of BulgariaThe green field of the flag is commonly said to stand for the forests. It was first the colour of the House of Braganza, the family of the first emperor.
Politics and protestNature and renewalPrideSource: Flag of BrazilShades and relatives of Sap green
Modern sap green may vary in appearance depending on the pigments used to make it. While the original was made from natural sources, today's versions can differ slightly in shade and transparency, depending on the blend of synthetic pigments.
Colours that go with Sap green
Harmonies are worked out from the value #507D2A. Contrast ratios follow the WCAG 2 formula.
Questions people ask about Sap green
What colour is sap green?
Sap green is a medium green shade, often described as earthy and natural, suitable for painting leaves and landscapes.
Where does the name sap green come from?
The name comes from its original source: the sap or juice of ripe buckthorn berries, which was used to create the pigment.
How is sap green made today?
Modern sap green is usually a mixture of synthetic pigments, most often based on Phthalocyanine Green G, rather than natural plant extracts.
What is sap green used for?
It is mainly used in art, especially for painting realistic greens in foliage and landscapes.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Shades of green" (the section "Sap green"), written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. 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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