Neel / Common Indigo
Indigofera tinctoria
Also known as Madras Indigo, Bengal Indigo, Black Henna, Dyers Indigo, East Asian Indigo Plant, Wild Indigo
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Found in India
- Rajasthan, West Bengal, Maharashtra & more
- Flowering
- August-January
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Indigofera tinctoria
- Genus
- Indigofera
- Family
- Fabaceae
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Habitat
- Degraded forest areas and waste places
- Distribution
- Pantropical
- Found in India
- Rajasthan, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Puducherry, Punjab, Uttarakhand
- Flowering & fruiting
- August-January
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf type
- Pinnately compound (leaflets in rows along a stalk)recorded
- Leaf surface
- Pubescent (softly hairy)recorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Neel itself; the rest are typical of the Fabaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- PurplerecordedPurple or violet
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Raceme
- Fruit
- Legume
Characters marked “recorded” are for Neel itself; the rest are typical of the Fabaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- नील neel, नीलिका nilika,नील nil
- Bengali
- নীল neel, নীল
- Tamil
- அவுரி avuri, நீலி nili, அவுரி
- Telugu
- అవిరి aviri, నీలిచెట్టు nilichettu
- Kannada
- ಅಂಜೂರ ನೀಲಿ anjoora neeli, ಹೆಣ್ಣು ನೀಲಿ hennu neeli, ನೀಲಿ ಗಿಡ neeli gida
- Malayalam
- അമരി amari, നീലയമരി nilayamari, നീലയമരി
- Marathi
- नीळ neel, नीली nili
Neel in India
This shrub, known as नील neel (Hindi), அவுரி avuri (Tamil), అవిరి aviri (Telugu), ಅಂಜೂರ ನೀಲಿ anjoora neeli (Kannada), അമരി amari (Malayalam), नीळ neel (Marathi), was historically one of India's most important dye crops. Indigofera tinctoria is found across West Bengal, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, both cultivated and growing wild.
Uses
Its leaves are fermented and processed to extract the deep blue dye indigo, historically a major export crop and still used today by artisanal and small-scale natural dye producers.
How to Identify Neel
A shrubby herb with pinnate leaves made of several small oval leaflets. Small pink to reddish pea-like flowers cluster along upright spikes, followed by slender, slightly curved pods — the leaves turn a characteristic blue-green when bruised or crushed, a useful field clue.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Common indigo called in different Indian languages?
- नील neel (Hindi); அவுரி avuri (Tamil); అవిరి aviri (Telugu); ಅಂಜೂರ ನೀಲಿ anjoora neeli (Kannada); അമരി amari (Malayalam); नीळ neel (Marathi); নীল neel (Bengali).
- Is 'indigo' the colour named after this plant?
- Yes — the colour indigo takes its name from the dye historically extracted from Indigofera tinctoria and related species.
- Is natural indigo dye still made from this plant?
- Yes, on a smaller artisanal scale — most commercial indigo dye today is synthetic, but natural indigo processing from Indigofera leaves continues in traditional and craft dyeing.
Fabaceae
Legume/Bean family
Neel belongs to the Fabaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
All plant problem & care guides →More in Fabaceae
View all Fabaceae →Sources: GBIF — Indigofera tinctoria (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Indigofera tinctoria (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)