Madder (Rubia tinctorum)

Rubia tinctorum, also known as Rose Madder, Common Madder and Dyer's Madder, it is an herbaceous perennial plant species belonging to the same plant family as coffee, the Rubiaceae family. Madder is evergreen with whorls of finely toothed leaves and greenish white flowers and black berries. The root has been used since ancient times as a vegetable red dye for leather, wool, cotton and silk. Although once revered as a herbal plant, Madder is rarely worked with today. The root is said have aperient, astringent, a cholagogue, diuretic and emmenagogue properties and was once used for kidney and bladder stones. Another species of madder, Rubia cordifolia called Manjistha holds a significant place in Ayurvedic medicine where it is indicated for stagnant blood and is considered a blood purifying herb. Madder promotes a cooling and detoxifying of the blood and assists in dissolving obstructions in blood flow.