Mango - crafts

Mango bark, fruits and even the leaves have been used from time to time in South Asia for dyeing. Some rather unusual techniques have been developed to obtain the desired mixtures.

Dyes

In some parts of India, mango tree bark was used to extract a light-coloured yellow dye for cotton, silk and woollen fabrics. The stems of the trees were beaten and the juice that ran from the bruised stems collected. This juice could be mixed with turmeric and lime to produce a rose pink colour which was used on cottons.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, cows were used in South Asia as processing machines to obtain the dye 'Indian yellow'. They were fed exclusively on mango leaves and the desired yellow compound would be excreted in their urine. Fortunately for cows, this practice was neither widespread nor common, as a diet of mango leaves ultimately led to death!

Etching with watercolour of mango fruits and flowers, with a purple-eyed butterfly.
Image: Both mango leaves and fruits can be used to produce dye.

Mango fruits have also been used to make dyeing solutions in India. The rind was soaked in water which produced an acid solution used in some traditional cloth dyeing techniques in India.

Wood

Among many wooden items, the timber from mango trees is used to make furniture, boards, ceilings, boxes, tools and tea chests. It's not a particularly durable wood, but if it is treated with preservative it can be used as a substitute for valuable teak. A common practise on the west coat of India is to preserve the wood using salt water. The wood is more durable under or in contact with water, and is put to good use in Tamil Nadu for boat building.