The need to be specific, and the need to know WHY

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Posted by Catherine Cartwright-Jones on January 3, 2005 at 08:36:49:

In reply to: Re: Henna from Yemen or India? posted by Shelly on January 2, 2005 at 22:11:20:

: African (North African practically) henna gives an orangish-red

That's too general a statement to be useful. More specifics are
needed here.

The henna from Egypt presently does not have particularly high dye
levels compared to that from the areas bordering the Thar Desert
(India and Pakistan, see link below). I don't know if that's because
cultivation is not as intensive and controlled, packaging is not well
controlled, or because of local climate conditions. All the Egyptian
henna I've gotten has had a lot of rubbish in it so I don't bother
with it. The henna wild-harvested in Sudan is ok, but the quality is
is variable ... well, because its harvested wild. So, if you percieve
these as being more orangey, that's because the lawsone level is
relatively low, and you're not going to get the intense dye
saturations you would with the body art quality hennas from the prime
growing regions. What you percieve as "more red" is a higher lawsone
level .... OR .... other dyestuffs are being added. This can be
determined under a microscope.

Henna from southern Morocco can yield amazing crops, and its extremely
clean. Other crops are ... well .... yawn. HennaBoy's Moroccan is
comparable to the best from the rim of the Thar Desert.

So .... its just not terribly useful to say "North African Henna is
orangish red", because that's a very BIG place, and the lawsone
molecule is orangish red in the first place. Its more helpful to talk
about specific lawsone levels, why they occur, how they are preserved
in processing and packaging.

I would not be suprised if the expertise and technologies in henna
production and processing spread to other areas in North Africa over
the next 20 years if demand increases. There are several areas which
should be able to produce henna with high lawsone levels, but
presently these are not in production or distribution.

The Geography of Henna

Follow Ups

Re: The need to be specific, and the need to know WHY Shelly 20:36:21 1/4/2005 (0)
Re: The need to be specific, and the need to know WHY Pierre 18:36:29 1/3/2005 (1)
- Re: The need to be specific, and the need to know WHY Catherine Cartwright-Jones 19:00:45 1/3/2005 (0)

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: : African (North African practically) henna gives an orangish-red : : That's too general a statement to be useful. More specifics are : needed here. : : The henna from Egypt presently does not have particularly high dye : levels compared to that from the areas bordering the Thar Desert : (India and Pakistan, see link below). I don't know if that's because : cultivation is not as intensive and controlled, packaging is not well : controlled, or because of local climate conditions. All the Egyptian : henna I've gotten has had a lot of rubbish in it so I don't bother : with it. The henna wild-harvested in Sudan is ok, but the quality is : is variable ... well, because its harvested wild. So, if you percieve : these as being more orangey, that's because the lawsone level is : relatively low, and you're not going to get the intense dye : saturations you would with the body art quality hennas from the prime : growing regions. What you percieve as "more red" is a higher lawsone : level .... OR .... other dyestuffs are being added. This can be : determined under a microscope. : : Henna from southern Morocco can yield amazing crops, and its extremely : clean. Other crops are ... well .... yawn. HennaBoy's Moroccan is : comparable to the best from the rim of the Thar Desert. : : So .... its just not terribly useful to say "North African Henna is : orangish red", because that's a very BIG place, and the lawsone : molecule is orangish red in the first place. Its more helpful to talk : about specific lawsone levels, why they occur, how they are preserved : in processing and packaging. : : I would not be suprised if the expertise and technologies in henna : production and processing spread to other areas in North Africa over : the next 20 years if demand increases. There are several areas which : should be able to produce henna with high lawsone levels, but : presently these are not in production or distribution.
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