How to Make Green Dye in Minecraft: Smelt Cactus

Green dye comes from smelting cactus. Put a cactus block in the top slot of a regular furnace with any fuel, and each cactus gives 1 green dye. Unlike most dyes, there’s no flower for it and no crafting shortcut.

One correction you’ll see repeated online: a smoker or blast furnace won’t take cactus. A smoker only accepts food and a blast furnace only ores and metal gear, so use a normal furnace.

Finding cactus

Cactus grows in deserts and badlands, usually 1 to 3 blocks tall. Break the bottom block and the whole column pops off as items. It hurts to touch, so don’t walk into it, and keep the drops away from other cactus blocks, which destroy items that land on them.

Wandering traders sometimes sell green dye directly (3 for an emerald), and desert village house chests can hold one. Neither is reliable.

A simple cactus farm

Cactus doesn’t need water or light to grow, so a small farm keeps producing with no upkeep:

1. Place sand (or red sand) and plant a cactus on it. No other block can touch the cactus on its four sides.
2. Leave a gap around each cactus and stagger them in a checkerboard so they never touch.
3. Each one grows up to 3 blocks tall. Break the top two and leave the bottom to regrow.

For hands-free farming, place a block (a fence works) one level above the bottom cactus and to the side of it. When the next cactus block grows up beside that fence, it breaks off by itself and the item can fall into water or a hopper below. A dozen plants cover most players’ dye needs.

What green dye is for

• Mixing: green + white dye = 2 lime dye; green + blue dye = 2 cyan dye.
• Coloring blocks: wool, carpet, glass, terracotta, candles, beds, banners and shulker boxes.
• Concrete: 1 green dye in a batch of concrete powder gives 8 blocks, a good color for grass-like floors and roofs.
• Leather armor and fireworks. Green is a common color for firework stars and camouflage armor.

Other dye recipes are in the guides hub.