8- Green Watercolour Swatches

There are literally hundreds of artist quality watercolours available from many brands. I have tested many of them and created swatches as seen on the right. The square box is painted into a damp wash at the top to show the colour mixed in water, with more pigment added towards the bottom. The rectangle is painted in a juicy wash to show the mass-tone. The small squares at the bottom of the swatch have the pigment number and characteristics - staining, lightfast rating, granulation and transparency. 

​For more information on Green pigments, see the Artiscreation Gren pigment database page here. the Handprint Green page is here, with comprehensive information based on lightfast tests completed in 2004.
Picture
The size of my swatches

Single pigment Green Watercolours 

Green pigments are denoted as PG followed by a number. Notice that Phthalo Green PG7 - a transparent, staining non-granulating green - is similar in hue to Viridian Green PG18, a transparent, non-staining granulating green. You can choose by colour and characteristics. Phthalo Green comes in GS (Green Shade) and YS (Yellow Shade). Note the section of Perylene Greens are made with PBk31, a Black pigment. The last section are all made with a yellow pigment PY129 - variations of Green Gold.

Greens made with Phthalo Green PG7 - staining and transparent

An unrealistic looking colour alone, this is a wonderful mixing colour. It makes an amazing range of useful greens with a warm yellow, Burnt Sienna, Indian Red and other earth pigments, and crimsons and reds. Also known as phthalo green blue shade. It is very similar from different manufacturers.

PG8

This is a beautiful but fugitive green.
Hooker's Green  Renesans pan; Green (Russian) - White Nights 

Greens made with Chromium Green Oxide - PG17

This is an interesting opaque and granulating pigment that is a very similar colour from each manufacturer, though the names for it vary a little.
  1. ​Chromium Oxide - A Gallo; Oxide of Chromium - Art Spectrum; ​Chromium Green - Daniel Smith; ​Chromium Green Oxide - Da Vinci Chrome Green - Blockx; 
  2. Chrmone Oxide Green - Kremer; Chromium Green Oxide, QoR; Chromium Oxide Green - Rembrandt; Chromium Oxide Green - Renesans half pan; Chromium Oxide Green - Schmincke;
  3. Chromium Oxide Green - Sennelier; Oxide of Chromium - Winsor & Newton 

Greens made with Viridian PG18 - granulating and liftable.

Although very similar in hue, Viridian is a much less powerful green in mixes than Phthalo Green. It is also granulating and non staining. It won't make the same wonderful blacks that can be created by mixing phthalo green with a crimson, bit it will make granulating colours that can be lifted out. It is a tricky pigment to make into a paint it seems, and may take a little more pre-wetting than most colours before use. I add a drop of glycerine to this in the palette and stir well to make rewetting easier.

PG19

Cobalt Green Bluish - Kremer; Cobalt Green Pure - Schmincke; ​Cobalt Green - Rembrandt (discontinued)

PG23

This gentle earth pigment doesn't have tinting strength but I enjoy using it for natural stones, rocks and landscape studies.
  1. Green Earth, Cool - A Gallo; Green Earth, Warm - A Gallo; Green Earth - Blockx; Rare Green Earth - Daniel Smith; Green Earth - Old Holland; 
  2. Terre Vert - QoR; Terre Verte - Winsor & Newton; ​Terre Verte (Yellow Shade) - Winsor & Newton

Greens made with PG26

Verona Green Earth - Lukas; Cobalt Green Deep - Old Holland; Cobalt Turquoise Green - Rembrandt; Cobalt Green Dark - Schmincke 

Greens made with PBk31 - deep shadow greens

Greens Made with Phthalo Green PG36 

Best known as phthalo green yellow shade. Another bright, unrealistic, mixing green, that is more on the yellow side. 

Greens make with PB36 (see also Cerulean blues and Turquoises)

Cobalt Green - Sennelier; Cobalt Green Deep - Daler Rowney 

Greens made with PY129

Cobalt Green Watercolours - made from PG50 

It is interesting that you'll also find PG50 colours in the turquoise section.

Single pigment greens in pigment number order. Includes PG8, PG23, PG26, and Daniel Smith Primateks.

Bohemian Green Earth - Daniel Smith; Malachite Genuine - Daniel Smith; Serpentine Genuine - Daniel Smith; Green Apatite Genuine - Daniel Smith; Diopside Genuine - Daniel Smith; ​Jadeite Genuine - Daniel Smith; Ziozite Genuine - Daniel Smith 

Mixed Pigment 'Sap' Greens

I think nearly every range has a version sap green- all somewhat different. Sap green pigment was originally made from the juice of green buckthorn berries, and was totally fugitive. While it is easy to mix your own sap green, a well chosen version that you like can be useful in the palette as a starting point. I particularly like the versions by Daniel Smith, Sennelier and Da Vinci. 

Mixed or single pigment 'Hooker's' Greens

The name comes from William Hooker (1779-1832), an English Illustrator/botanical artist who created this mix to paint leaves. Originally made from Prussian Blue and Gamboge. Genuine Gamboge is fugitive, and not used in watercolour any more (I hope). The variety of mixes called Hooker's Green are vast and easy to mix oneself.

Mixed Pigment 'Olive' Greens

Olives come in many colours, as do these watercolours. Pigment information will be written in here shortly.

Mixed Pigment Greens

Some are made from a yellow and a blue, some from a green and a yellow, some using earth pigments but all are mixed greens. It can be convenient to have a mixed green in your palette, especially if it is made with pigments already in your palette for the best colour harmony. (I'll add to these and sort them further shortly.)

Mixed pigment yellow greens 

Mixed pigment deep greens

These swatches are painted and added as a guide. The intention is to show the characteristics of each colour when painted. The colour reproduction is not perfect but hopefully will still be helpful used in conjunction with the manufacturer's website.  Thank you to those of you, from Canada, Sweden, Australia and the USA, who have helped me with this section by sharing your favourite colours. If you notice errors please let me know so I can correct them. If you have artist quality watercolour that are not shown here and want to help me build up this resource, also please let me know :-)
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This page was last edited November 2022. I plan to sort the galleries further to make it easier to find the swatch you are looking for.