Alkanet, the commercial name of two different plants. True alkanet consists of the roots and leaves of the Lausonia inermis, which grows wild in the Levant. The leaves pulverized and made into a paste yield a yellow dye. The root, which contains a red pigment, is used as a cosmetic. False alkanet (orcanette, radix alcannae spuriae) is the root of anchusa tincto-ria, which grows in France, Spain, Italy, Hungary, and Greece. It is inodorous, has a faint, somewhat astringent taste, and colors the saliva. It is used in dyeing goods previously prepared with alum mordants for violet, and iron mordants for gray. The mordanted linen or cotton goods are dipped in an alcoholic extract of the root. It is also used for dyeing silk, but not wool. The coloring matter is called anchusine. The violet and gray colors are brilliant.