Dyer's Greenweed

NaturalFLOWERSgreen · floral · fresh

HeartPyramid

3/5Strength

—Tenacity

2Origins

Specimen

Dyer's Greenweed perfume ingredient — Heart

Genista tinctoria

Definition

A faint, broom-like sweetness with a green-herbaceous backbone. The yellow flowers carry a subtle, slightly coumarin-tinged scent, like hay in sunlight.

FLORAL GREEN SWEET WARM FRESH

Dyer's Broom, Greenweed, Genista

Type: Ingredient
Olfactive family: Florals
Subfamily: Green florals
Cluster: Green-fresh florals
Source: flowers
Chemical class: complex natural (absolute)

Instruments

Pyramid

TTop

HHeart

BBase

3/5Strength

Medium

odour strength

Producing countries

Asia Europe

Scent

Faintly sweet with a broom-like quality and green-herbaceous undertones. A subtle coumarin note provides warm sweetness. Less pungent than gorse, less coconut-like than scotch broom. The overall impression is gentle, sunny, and agricultural rather than ornamental.

In PREMIEREPEAU

DISCOVERY SET7 × 2 ml →EXTRAIT DE PARFUMThe seven extraits →

Terroir & Origins

The Full Story

Dyer's greenweed (Genista tinctoria) is a shrub in the legume family (Fabaceae) native to Europe and western Asia. Historically, it was cultivated as a source of yellow dye: the flowers and young shoots produce a yellow pigment when combined with alum as a mordant. The plant also produces green dye when combined with woad (blue).

The flowers have a subtle, broom-like fragrance: faintly sweet, slightly coumarin-tinged, with a green-herbaceous quality. The scent is less intense than that of scotch broom or gorse but shares the same family character. In perfumery, dyer's greenweed is a natural note, though rarely used. The plant contains isoflavones, flavonoids, and small amounts of volatile compounds.

When represented in fragrance, the note functions as a modifier in herbaceous, Mediterranean, and craft-heritage compositions. It provides a quiet, artisanal quality referencing textile and dye traditions rather than garden beauty.

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Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method

Not commercially extracted for perfumery. The plant was historically used for dyeing rather than fragrance. Steam distillation is theoretically possible but not practiced at scale.

Formula: Complex mixture; contains genistein (C₁₅H₁₀O₅), luteolin
CAS: 90045-29-7
Botanical: Genista tinctoria
Appearance: Colorless to pale yellow liquid
Odour strength: Medium
Synonyms: Dyer's Broom, Greenweed, Genista

IFRA status

See note

No IFRA Standard for the material itself (51st Amendment)

Physical properties

Note: Genista tinctoria; historical dye plant; used as olfactory concept in perfumery

In Perfumery

Dyer's greenweed is a rare natural modifier in herbaceous and craft-heritage compositions. It provides quiet broom-like sweetness with coumarin undertones. The historical dyeing association gives it narrative value in compositions referencing textile arts and artisanal traditions. Rarely distilled commercially.

Role in the formula

01diffusion enhancer

02signature note

03lifting agent

04freshness

Available as

essential oil absolute