§5.13Καὶ τούτου συνεψομένου περὶ τὰς τῶν καρπῶν πέψεις ὑπό τε τοῦ ἡλίου καὶ τῆς τοῦ ἀέρος θερμότητος, ἕκαστα καθ᾽ ἑαυτὰ συνίσταται τῶν χρμάτων, τὰ μὲν θᾶττον τὰ δὲ βραδύτερον, καθάπερ συμβαίνει καὶ περὶ τὴν βαφὴν τὴν τῆς πορφύρας.
And when this is co-cooked during the ripening of the fruits by both the sun and the heat of the air, each of the colors is formed by itself, some faster and others slower, just as it also happens in the case of the dyeing of purple.
§5.14Καὶ γὰρ ταύτην ὅταν κόψαντες ἅπασαν ἐξ αὐτῆς τὴν ὑγρασίαν ἐκκλύσωσι, καί ταύτην ἐγχέαντες ἕψωσιν ἐν ταῖς χύτραις, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον οὐδὲν ὅλως ἐν τῇ βαφῇ τῶν χρωμάτων φανερόν ἐστι διὰ τὸ κατὰ μικρὸν ἕκαστον αὐτῶν τοῦ ὑγροῦ συνεψομένου μᾶλλον καὶ τῶν ἔτι ὑπαρχόντων ἐν αὐτοῖς χρωμάτων μιγνυμένων ἀλλήλοις πολλὰς καὶ ποικίλας λαμβάνειν διαφοράς· καὶ γὰρ μέλαν καὶ λευκὸν καὶ ὄρφνιον καὶ ἀεροειδὲς καὶ τότε ἅπαν γίνεται συνεψηθέντων, ὥστε διὰ τὴν κρᾶσιν μηκέτι καθ᾽ αὑτὸ μηδὲν τῶν ἄλλων χρωμάτων φανερὸν εἶναι.
For indeed, when they crush this and wash out all the moisture from it, and pour and boil this in pots, at first no color at all is visible in the dye, because as each of them is gradually more co-cooked as the moisture is boiled down, and the colors still existing in them are mixed with one another, they take on many and various differences; for indeed black and white and dark brown and sky-colored and everything then is produced when they are co-cooked, so that because of the mixture none of the other colors is any longer visible by itself.
§5.15Τὸ δ᾽ αὐτὸ τοῦτο συμβαίνει καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν καρπῶν.
And this very same thing happens also in the case of fruits.
Ἐν πολλοῖς γὰρ διὰ τὸ μὴ πάσας ἅμα γίνεσθαι τὰς τῶν χρωμάτων πέψεις, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν αὐτῶν συνίστασθαι πρότερον τὰ δ᾽ ὕστερον, ἐξ ἑτέρων εἰς ἕτερα μεταβάλλουσιν, ὥσπερ καὶ οἱ βότρυες καὶ οἱ φοίνικες.
For in many, because all the ripenings of the colors do not happen at the same time, but some of them are formed earlier and others later, they change from one to another, just like clusters of grapes and dates.
§5.16Καὶ γὰρ τούτων ἔνιοι τὸ μὲν πρῶτον γίνονται φοινικοῖ, τοῦ δὲ μέλανος ἐν αὐτῷ συνισταμένου μεταβάλλουσι πάλιν εἰς τὸ οἰνωπόν· τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον γίνονται κυανοειδεῖς, ὅταν ἤδη καὶ τὸ φοινικιοῦν πολλῷ καὶ ἀκράτῳ τῷ μέλανι μιχθῇ.
For indeed, some of these at first become crimson, and as the black is formed in them, they change again into wine-color; and finally they become dark blue, when already the crimson also is mixed with much and pure black.
§5.17Τὰ γὰρ ὕστερον ἐπιγινόμενα τῶν χρωμάτων, ὅταν κρατήσῃ, τὰς προτέρας χρόας ἐξαλλάττει, Μάλιστα δὲ τοῦτο ἐπὶ τῶν μελάνων καρπῶν φανερόν ἐστιν·
For the colors that supervene later, when they get the upper hand, change the previous colors.
σχεδὸν γὰρ αὐτῶν οἱ πλεῖστοι, καθάπερ εἴρηται, κατ᾽ ἀρχὰς μὲν ἐκ τοῦ ποώδους μεταβάλλοντες μικρὸν ἐπιφοινικίζουσι καὶ γίνονται πυρροί, ταχὺ δὲ μεθίστανται πάλιν ἐκ τοῦ πυρροῦ καὶ ἀκράτου τοῦ μέλανος ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις ἐνυπάρχοντος.
And this is especially manifest in the case of black fruits; for almost most of them, as has been said, changing at first from the herbaceous, become slightly crimson and turn fire-red, but quickly they shift again from the fire-red, because of the pure black existing in such things.
§5.18Δηλοῖ δέ· καὶ γὰρ τὰ κλήματα καὶ τὰ ἔρια καὶ τὰ φύλλα πάντων ἐστὶ τῶν τοιούτων μέλανα διὰ τὸ πλείστην ἐν αὐτοῖς ὑπάρχειν τὴν τοιαύτην χρόαν, ἐπεὶ διότι γε τῶν καρπῶν οἱ μέλανες ἀμφοτέρων τῶν χρωμάτων μετέχουσι, φανερόν ἐστιν· πάντων γὰρ ὁ χυλὸς γίνεται τῶν τοιούτων οἰνωπός.
And it is clear; for the twigs and the roots and the leaves of all such plants are black because such color exists in them in the greatest abundance, since it is manifest that the black fruits participate in both colors; for the juice of all such fruits becomes wine-colored.
Τὰ δὲ χρώματα ἐν τῇ γενέσει προτερεῖ τὰ φοινικιᾶ τῶν μελάνων.
And in the process of generation, the crimson colors precede the black ones.
§5.19Δηλοῖ δέ· καὶ γὰρ τὰ ὑπὸ τοὺς σταλαγμοὐς ἐδάφη, καὶ ὅλως ὅπου συμβαίνει γίνεσθαι μετρία ὑδάτων ἔκρυσις ἐν τόποις σκιεροῖς, ἅπαντα μεταβάλλει πρῶτον ἐκ τοῦ ποώδους εἰς τὸ φοινικιοῦν χρῶμα, καὶ γίνεται τὸ ἔδαφος ὡς ἂν αἵματος ἀρτίως ἐπεσφαγμένου κατὰ τὸν τόπον τοῦτον, καθ᾽ ὃν ἂν λάβῃ τὸ ποῶδες τῶν χρωμάτων τὴν πέψιν· τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον καὶ τοῦτο μέλαν ἰσχυρῶς γίνεται καὶ κυανοειδές.
And it is clear; for the ground under drippings, and in general wherever a moderate outflow of water happens to occur in shady places, all changes first from the herbaceous to the crimson color, and the ground becomes as if of freshly slaughtered blood at that spot where the herbaceous color undergoes ripening; but finally, this also becomes strongly black and dark blue.
§5.20Ὅπερ συμβαίνει καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν καρπῶν.
Which very thing happens also in the case of fruits.
Ὅτι δὲ χρωμάτων ὕστερον ἐπιγινομένων, ὅταν κρατῆται τὰ πρότερον, τὸ χρῶμα τῶν καρπῶν μεταβάλλει, καὶ διὰ τῶν τοιούτων ῥᾴδιον συνιδεῖν.
And that when later colors supervene, and the previous ones are overcome, the color of the fruits changes, is easy to perceive also from such things.
§5.21Καὶ γὰρ τῆς ῥοιᾶς ὁ καρπὸς καὶ τὰ τῶν ῥόδων φύλλα κατ᾽ ἀρχὰς μὲν γίνεται λευκά, τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον ἤδη χρωζομένων ἐν αὐτοῖς τῶν χυλῶν ὑπὸ τῆς πέψεως ἀποχραίνεται, καὶ μεταβάλλει πάλιν εἰς τὸ τοῦ ἁλουργοῦ χρῶμα καὶ τὸ φοινικιοῦν.
For indeed, the fruit of the pomegranate and the petals of roses at first become white, but finally, when the juices in them are already colored by ripening, they are dyed and change again into the sea-purple and the crimson color.
§5.22Τὰ δὲ καὶ πλείους ἐπ᾽ αὐτοῖς ἔχει χρόας, καθάπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς μήκωνος ὁ ὀπὸς καὶ τῆς ἐλαίας ὁ ἀμόργης· καὶ γὰρ οὗτος τὸ μὲν πρῶτον γίνεται λευκός, καθάπερ καὶ ὁ τῆς ῥοιᾶς καρπός, λευκανθεὶς δὲ πάλιν εἰς τὸ φοινικιοῦν μεταβάλλει χρῶμα, τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον πολλῷ τῷ μέλανι κραθεὶς γίνεται κυανοειδής.
And some things have even more colors upon them, just as the juice of the poppy and the dregs of the olive; for indeed this at first becomes white, just like the fruit of the pomegranate, and having become white, it changes again into the crimson color, and finally, being mixed with much black, it becomes dark blue.
§5.23Διὸ καὶ τὰ τῆς μήκωνος φύλλα τὰ μὲν ἄνω ἔχει φοινικιοῦντα παρὰ τὸ γίνεσθαι ταχεῖαν αὐτῶν τὴν ἔκπεψιν, τὰ δὲ πρὸς ταῖς ἀρχαῖς μέλανα, ἤδη τούτου τοῦ χρώματος ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐπικρατοῦντος, ὥσπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ καρποῦ· καὶ γὰρ τὸ τελευταῖον γίνεται μέλας.
Therefore also the petals of the poppy have their upper parts crimson because of their quick ripening, but the parts near the base black, as this color already prevails in them, just as in the case of the fruit; for indeed finally it becomes black.