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A wide variety of plants growing in the Medieval Herb Garden on a sunny day

Medieval herb garden blog 82: Weld

Wednesday, August 05, 2026

Week 82 volunteer update

Another hot day of cutting back chicory, dyer’s chamomile and woodsage. Despite the drought, and plants being “at death’s door”, we still have over 50 varieties of plants in flower. The soapwort and fleabane are still looking particularly good at the moment.

Kim then cut back the lovage. Carole removed the seeds, and packed them into little envelopes. This gets them ready for sowing next year.

Lovage seeds harvested from the Medieval Herb Garden

Plant of the week: Weld (reseda luteola)

'Reseda' comes from the Latin 'resedo', meaning 'to calm' or 'to heal'. It was used by the Roman naturalist and philosopher Pliny to treat bruises and as a natural sedative. 'Luteola' is from the Latin 'luteus', meaning 'yellow'.

The word 'weld' first appeared in Middle English in the 1300s. It came from the Old English 'wealde'. This is related to the Germanic word 'wald', meaning 'forest' or 'wild'. Its other names are dyer’s rocket, dyer's weld, dyer's weed, dyer's yellow weed, yellow weed and wild mignonette.

Weld is native to Europe and Western Asia. It is a tall, biennial, hermaphrodite, herbaceous, evergreen plant. It grows in moist to well-drained, neutral to alkaline soil. Because of this, it doesn’t do well on clay. Weld prefers full sun to partial shade, in any position but north-facing.

In its first year, weld grows as a low-lying basal rosette. This can span up to 12 inches (30 cm) across. The rosette is made up of a flat, dense clump of long, narrow, lance-shaped leaves. The leaves have crinkly edges. They are a deep green, hairless and shiny on top.

In the second year, weld can grow to a height of 5 ft (1.5 m) and a spread of 18 inches (45 cm). The stem leaves are lanceolate. They are typically narrower and shorter than the large basal leaves of the first year. They are usually 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 cm) in length. The second-year leaves become progressively smaller as they travel up the plant. The leaves grow on alternating sides along the main stem. They are soft, hairless and have a slightly matte or semi-glossy finish. The second-year leaves are a slightly paler shade of green than the first-year leaves.

Weld flowers in June to August. It produces tall, slender spikes of tiny, bilaterally symmetrical, pale-yellow flowers. The flowers have four petals. They have a “subtle, sweet, and spicy fragrance that can be peppery or honey-like”. The crushed or bruised leaves have a strong smell which some people find unpleasant.

The fruit is a capsule with three lobes. The seeds are 0.8 to 1.0 mm across, brown and shiny. These enable the plant to readily self-seed.

Weld produces a very strong, thick and deep primary taproot. This anchors it in dry, gravelly or chalky soils. It also has a network of finer side-roots. The deep roots make the plant moderately drought-tolerant. But, because the roots are sensitive to disturbance, weld does not transplant easily. Because of this, it is best grown directly from seed.

Weld growing in the Medieval Herb Garden

Culinary uses of weld

Weld is not traditionally used in cooking. The leaves and stems of the plant are extremely bitter and contain no nutritional value. The plant contains glucosinolates which give it a bitter taste. Because of this, weld is not considered to be edible.

Use of weld as a dye plant

Weld is a popular natural dye. It is famous for producing vibrant, lightfast and washfast yellows. This means the colour doesn't fade easily.

When combined with an alum mordant, weld creates a brilliant, clear and rich golden yellow. Adding a bit of iron to the dye bath creates deep olive greens.

Overdyeing indigo or woad with weld produces grassy or emerald greens.

Folklore and other facts about weld

Weld was traditionally used as a source of yellow dye. It has possibly been used since neolithic times (c. 10,000 BC to c. 2,000 BC). It was used before either woad (for blue shades) or madder (red shades).

In Ancient Egypt, weld was frequently used to dye fabrics used for mummification. In Ancient India, it was used to colour traditional clothing and sacred religious texts.

In Ancient Rome weld was reputedly used to colour the robes of the Vestal Virgins and priestesses. It was believed to hold sacred properties. It represented purity, virtue and a connection to the divine.

Folklore from medieval Europe claims that weld had protective properties. It was used in spells to ward-off evil spirits and to protect against witchcraft.

Weld was the most-commonly used yellow dye up until the 1700s. Quercitron, a yellow dye extracted from the black oak tree, was discovered in 1771. Both weld and quercitron were replaced by synthetic dyes by the end of the 1800s. These synthetic aniline dyes were created from coal tar. This was cheaper to produce than the natural dyes.

Medieval medicinal uses of weld*

Weld was used to heal wounds, including the “bites of venomous beasts”, and soothe bruises. It helped to cure ailments ranging from plague to tough phlegm. It was also noted as having narcotic (opiate) properties.

*As always, this isn't to be considered medical advice today. Please don't use any plants mentioned in these blogs as medicine without advice from a doctor.

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