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Indigo plant (ai)
***** Location: Japan
***** Season: Various, see below
***** Category: Plant, Humanity *****************************
Explanation
ai 藍 Chinese indigo plant Polygonum tinctorium Lour.
Polygonum tinctorum
tadeai タデアイ
dyer's knotweedThis plant belongs to the family of buckwheat. Its leaves are used to produce the blue Indigo dye.
It was already used in China during the Western Zhou period (ca. 1045-771 B.C.).
Until the introduction of
Indigofera, this was the most important blue dye in Asia.
It was introduced to Japan in the 4th and 5th century.
Indigoferais a large genus of about 700 species of flowering plants belonging to the family Fabaceae. Originally from Pakistan, they have now been transported to much of the tropical and subtropical regions of the world, with a few species, also the temperate zone of eastern Asia.
Several of them and especially
Indigofera tinctoria and
Indigofera suffruticosa are used to produce the dye indigo.
The chemical
aniline, from which many important dyes are derived, was first synthesized from I. suffruticosa (syn. I. anil, whence the name aniline).
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !Before the use of tade ai around the 6th centure, the more wild form of
yama ai 山藍 やまあい "Mountain Indigo" was used in Japan.
Mercurialis leiocarpa
Its roots or leaves were crushed and the liquid used for dyeing.
aizuri no koromo 藍摺衣 robes dyed with mountain indigo
. . . CLICK here for Photos !akamo no suso 赤裳(あかも)の裾(すそ) hem of the traditional red robes
Yama-ai robes were a kind of blue, called SEI 青.
At this time, the difference between green and blue was not yet made.
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kigo for early spring ai maku 藍蒔く (あいまく) sowing indigo plants ai uu 藍植う（あいうう）planting indigo
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kigo for all summer ai yukata 藍浴衣（あいゆかた）indigo yukata light cotton robes, yukata 浴衣 ゆかた kigo for late summer ai karu 藍刈る (あいかる) harvesting indigo first harvest of indigo, ichiban ai 一番藍（いちばんあい）
second harvest of indigo, niban ia 二番藍（にばんあい）
aidama 藍玉（あいだま
）"indigo ball". . . CLICK here for Photos !aitsuki 藍搗（あいつき）pounding indigo
shed for pounding indigo miniature . Folk Toys from Tokushima . 
yama ai 山藍（やまあい）
mountain indigo Ryuukyuu ai 琉球藍（りゅうきゅうあい）
indigo from Okinawa. . . CLICK here for Photos !Indo ai インド藍（いんどあい）Indigo from India
Numbers used in Kigo :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
kigo for mid-autumn 
ai no hana 藍の花 (あいのはな) indigo flowers ..... tadeai no hana 蓼藍の花（たであいのはな）(tade-ai)
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kigo for all autumn kara-ai no hana 韓藍の花（からあいのはな）
cockscomb flowers(lit. Indigo plant from Korea)
. . . CLICK here for Photos !***************************** Worldwide useOklahomaCream Wild Indigo, Baptisia bracteata
Blue Wild Indigo, Baptisia australis
Indigo Bush, Amorpha fruticosa
White Wild Indigo, Baptisia alba
. Oklahoma Saijiki *****************************
Things found on the way
aizome 藍染 dying with indigoIndigo Ai had been very popular for deep -blue coloring. It can produce amazingly deep indigo blue even though the very material are green leaves.
Aizome is one of the oldest dyeing techniques in Japan and it also has medical effect such as detoxification. Therefore, Aizome cotton was so popular among the ordinary people and they made many types of designing techniques such as Tsutsugaki, Katazome, and Shibori more and more popular.
Their simple beautifulness is strong and lively compared with luxurious silk and elaborate dye that upper-classed people were fond of.
The basic raw material is the leaf of the
Polygonum Tinctorium. The Japanese process differs from that in other parts of the world in that the leaves are fermented to extract the indigo compound.
The plant grows well in the southern part of Japan; nowadays only four main providers manage to maintain their business. Kosoen - located in the western part of Tokyo - directly orders
sukumo すくも (fermented Polygonum leaves) from the Tokushima area of Shikoku (one of the 4 main islands of Japan).
Using sukumo - composted leaves - doesn't provide any shortcut to the rest of the dyeing process. Compared with other Indigo dyeing methods, the Japanese way requires more sensitive care throughout the process because they have to keep the bacteria alive through the entire dyeing session!
source : www.kosoen.com aizome leather purse with Daruma box
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Daruma Coaster of blue indigo cotton material 
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E132 Indigo carmine, IndigotineFD&C Blue 2 (food colouring)
. Food Colors and E-Numbers (European Union) .................................................................................
fukaai, fuka-ai 深藍 dark indigo almost black,
ai-iro 藍色あいいろ #165e83
koi-ai 濃藍こいあい #0f2350
. Japanese Color Codes :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Baptisia australis, commonly known as
Blue Wild Indigo or
Blue False Indigo, is a herbaceous perennial in the pea family. It is native to much of the central and eastern North America and is particularly common in the Midwest, but it has also been introduced well beyond its natural range.
It is well known in gardens due to its attractive pea-like, deep blue flowers that emerge on spikes in the late spring and early summer.
Additional common names of this plant exist, such as
Indigo Weed, Rattleweed, Rattlebush and Horse Fly Weed.
The common name "blue false indigo" is derived from it being used as a substitute for the superior dye producing plant, namely Indigofera tinctoria.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !*****************************
HAIKU
初染めや藍職人の爪の藍 hatsuzome ya ai-shokunin no tsume no ai
first dyeing -
the blue nails
of an indigo dyerKondoo Yooko 近藤陽子
*****************************Related wordskigo for early autumn aka no manma 赤のまんま "red as it is" ...... aka no mama 赤のまま
red knotweed/smartweed/jointweedinutade, inu tade 犬蓼 (いぬたで) "dog smartweed"
hanatade, hana tade 花蓼（はなたで）
Polygonum longisetum
tade no hana 蓼の花 (たでのはな)
flowers of the red knotweed /smartweed /jointweed
hotade 穂蓼（ほたで）ears of knotweed
tade momiji 蓼紅葉（たでもみじ） red leaves of knotweed
. . . . .
ooketade 大毛蓼 (おおけたで) Polygonum orientale
..... benikusa 紅草（べにくさ) "red plant"
kiss me over the garden gate. . . CLICK here for Photos ! .................................................................................
kigo for all summer tade 蓼 (たで) smartweed, water pepper
Persicaria hydropiper. Bitterling
yanagitade 柳蓼（やなぎたで）
hontade 本蓼（ほんたで）"real smartweed"
..... matade 真蓼（またで）
tade tsumu 蓼摘む（たでつむ）picking smartweed
tade uri 蓼売（たでうり）selling smartweed
tadesu 蓼酢（たです）
smartweed vinegar. TADE ... food with water pepper benitade 紅蓼 / tade たで(蓼) water pepper, smartweed
Polygonum hydropiper
aotade アオタデ green water pepper
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kigo for early autumn yanonegusa 矢の根草 (やのねぐさ)
Polygonum nipponenselit. "arrow head plant"
A yearly plant that grows in wetlands. The form of the leaves relate to the name.
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*****
.SAIJIKI ... HUMANITY
Kigo for Summer :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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