A catalog of Native North American Plants: Eucalyptus sideroxlylon

Eucalyptus sideroxlylon

Common name: red ironbark, Rosea

Is a small to medium-sized tree that is native to eastern Australia. It is an introduce in the state of California during the gold rush (1850), primarily for the use of its wood for making rail-seating, but the wood didn’t meet the standards. There are 700 species of eucalyptus.

Red ironbark has dark, deeply furrowed ironbark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white, red, pink or creamy yellow flowers and cup-shaped to shortened spherical fruit.

For dyeing:

All parts of Eucalyptus may be used to make dyes that are substantive on protein fibers (such as silk and wool), simply by processing the plant part with water. Colors to be achieved range from yellow and orange through green, tan, chocolate and deep rust red. The material remaining after processing can be safely used as mulch or fertilizer.

 Dye color: shades of orange