Common Name:

General Information

Impatiens tinctoria is an upright, herbaceous perennial herb with a succulent hollow stem that can grow up to 2 metres tall from a large tuberous rootstock up to 30cm × 10cm at or just below the soil surface[, ].
A popular dye plant in Ethiopia, where it is commonly harvested from the wild and also used medicinally. It is cultivated as a dye plant in Ethiopia and is also widely grown for its striking flowers as an indoor and outdoor ornamental in tropical and temperate regions[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

East tropical Africa - Eritrea, Ethiopia, southern Sudan, northeastern DR Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi.

Habitat

Damp, generally shaded places; rain-forest, forest fringes, shrub-filled gullies, stream margins, shady banks; hill slopes, swampy or marshy sites; grassy scrub; at elevations from 750 - 3,630 metres[, ].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.00 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A very variable species, it has been divided into five subspecies[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

A root decoction is drunk against abdominal pains and as a purgative[].
A paste made from the mashed tuber is applied to the skin as a beauty treatment and also because it helps to control fungal infections and it toughens the skin[].

The stem is chewed to treat mouth and throat diseases[].

The compound lawsone, found in the tuber, shows antifungal activity and is active against fungi causing ringworm and athlete’s foot (tinea pedis)[].

Other Uses

In Ethiopia women chop or mash the inside of the tubers of Impatiens tinctoria (‘ensolella’) into a paste to dye the palms and nails of the hands and feet a dark reddish colour. It is considered a beauty treatment similar to that of henna, whilst it also helps to control fungal infections and to toughen the skin. The tubers are also used to dye cloth[].
The juice of the pounded roots is one of the ingredients for a red ink[].
For dyeing the skin, the tubers are washed and sometimes peeled, chopped and then left to steep for at least 12 hours. They are then heated, mashed and the paste is applied to the palms and nails of the hands only (for young girls) or to the hands and the feet of adult women. It can also be put in leaves, wrapped and tied around the hands and feet for 6 - 8 hours in order to get a more lasting dye[].
When dyeing cloth, salt and oil are added to the dye bath where the chopped tubers are boiling, before plunging the cloth[].
A red ink is obtained by mixing the juices of the tubers of this species with the tubers of Impatiens rothii and Rubia cordifolia, plus the bark of Osyris quadripartita, then letting the liquid mixture thicken in the sun[]
Although the dye components of this species and many other species (such as Impatiens rothii) that are also used to dye the skin red, have not been thoroughly investigated, they all contain naphtoquinone derivates close to lawsone (the active compound in henna) and might be used as substitutes for henna[].

Propagation

Seed -
Cuttings root easily[].

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