In 2024, 50% of online sales ($2 from every packet) for Hopi Black Dye Sunflower, Hopi Red Dye Amaranth, and Hopi Nicotiana will be donated to Hopi Tutskwa Permaculture. We are excited to support their work around food sovereignty through this indigenous seed benefit sharing partnership. Below is some information about their non-profit from their website. For additional information and ways to support their work, click here.

About Hopi Tutskwa Permaculture

Hopi Tutskwa Permaculture is a community Indigenous-led non-profit based in the village of Kykotsmovi, located in Northern Arizona on the Indigenous Hopi Reservation. Our mission is to create community-based solutions in order to pass knowledge to future generations and rebuild culturally sustainable and healthy communities. We initiate learning projects that engage, train, and inspire Hopi youth and community to revitalize Hopi culture, knowledge, and traditions. We support Hopi community members in developing leadership skills to strengthen local food systems and to implement sustainable ecological projects within the Hopi community. We aim to provide our community with the tools, training and practical experience needed to rebuild a vibrant community based on traditional Hopi values and worldview.

Hopi Black Dye Sunflower

(Helianthus annuus)

Sunflowers are one of the oldest domesticated crops from North America, and this variety was selected over many generations for its beautiful pigment and large edible seeds. Known as Tceqa' Qu' Si in Hopi, Hopi Black Dye Sunflower is a traditional dye used in Hopi basketry and wool works.

We’ve been growing this variety since 2013, and it has consistently been one of our favorite sunflowers. We like a sunflower that is tall (7-11 ft ✔️), has large delicious seeds (✔️), and is gorgeous in arrangements (✔️). In addition to these traits, this sunflower is an absolute joy to dye with. The dye pot smells like a sweet and earthy sun-drenched summer day, which is EXACTLY what we need from a dye pot during the last days of winter. The colors you can obtain from the seed hulls range from a gentle warm lavender to a cool black velvet. Beautiful on wool or cotton. We recommend snacking on the seeds through autumn and saving the hulls for winter dyeing.

We direct sow seeds around our last frost date. Avoid starting sunflowers indoors as they quickly become etiolated without full sun and are stunted when transplanted. As your seeds are emerging, thin the plants to 2’ spacing, selecting for dark pigmented cotyledons which correlates to seed hull color (note the darkly pigmented seedling in the bottom photo compared to the less pigmented individual that we would remove).

Packet: 25 Seeds