Soap Plants

Many plants contain substances called saponins - these are toxic glycosides and can be found, usually in low concentrations, in many of our foods, especially in beans and some leaves. Fortunately saponins are destroyed by prolonged heat and are also very poorly absorbed by the body, so most of what we ingest passes straight through us. These saponins, however, are not without their uses and one of their properties is to form a lather in water that is a gentle but effective cleaner. A number of plants contain quite high concentrations of saponins and have been used as an alternative soap. One of the best known examples of this, at least in Europe, is our native wild flower Soapwort (Saponaria officinalis). This is a perennial plant usually found in damper soils in woods, hedgerows, by streams, etc. It is still used nowadays particularly for cleaning delicate fabrics, including the Bayeaux Tapestry! The saponins are extracted by boiling for a short time and then infusing the whole plant. It can also be used as a hair and body wash. Closely related to Soapwort are a number of other native plants that contain useful quantities of saponins, including Ragged Robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi) and many of the Campions (Silene spp).

Bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) is another native plant that has a report of being rich in saponins, the rhizome is used. This is just one of a number of uses for this ubiquitous weed; a glue can be made from the rootstock, the fronds are used as a packing material - it is excellent for lining fruit baskets where it repels insects and helps prevent rotting, a compost made from the fronds is excellent for tree seedlings. The root and young fronds have been eaten but there is some evidence to suggest that they are carcinogenic.

The Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) is a native of S. Europe but has been grown in Britain for so long that you would be forgiven for thinking it was native. Its seeds are rich in saponins and will lather well in cold, preferably soft, water when rubbed between the hands like a bar of soap. A fairly effective cleanser though it does leave its smell behind! The seed is a good source of edible starch if the saponins are first removed by leeching in water and then by thorough cooking. Since this process also removes most of the vitamins and minerals (and the starch is less than exquisite), we'll leave this to more dedicated wild food enthusiasts. Other members of the genus have similar uses.

North America provides quite a number of 'soap plants'. One very interesting plant is the Soap Lily (Chlorogalum pomeridianum) - a bulbous plant from California where it grows on dry, open hills and plains and occasionally in woods. Although not often seen in Britain it grows quite well here if given a reasonably rich, well drained soil. The bulb, stripped of its outer covering, is very rich in saponins and can as be dried and grated up as required to be used as soap flakes. This bulb, if given a long slow baking, can be eaten and is said to be very nice - we've not tried it yet and have some reservations, particularly having read that a fibre from the bulb is used as a stuffing for mattresses and to make small brushes. The sap that exudes from a baking bulb can be used as a glue and the young spring growth can be eaten - it is said to be sweet when baked. Altogether a very useful plant.

Ceanothus cuneatus is another Californian growing on dry slopes. An evergreen shrub, it requires a sunny position in a light soil - it does not like chalk nor does it like being transplanted - so should be pot grown prior to being put in its final position. Probably not hardy away from southern Britain. The flowers are used and these impart a pleasant aroma. Indeed the N. American Indians often used them when bathing and a bride would traditionally use them on her wedding night. Most other members of the genus could be similarly used.

There are many species of Yucca growing in the more arid areas of southern N. America and a surprising number of them are hardy in most areas of Britain if given a free draining soil and a sunny position. These plants were a vital part of the local economy, providing food (fruits, flowers, and flowering stems), fibres for ropes etc, leaves for basketry and as brooms, plus a soap from the root. This soap is said to be a particularly good hair wash. Species to try include Y. baccata, Y. filamentosa, Y. glauca, Y. gloriosa and Y. whipplei.

Philadelphus lewisii comes from western N. America where it grows in gullies, along water courses and on rocky cliffs and hillsides. In Britain it prefers a loamy soil, and full sun or partial shade. The leaves and flowers lather well in cold water, an infusion of the bark can also be used.

You might also be intrested in the following sites: Soap Making Past and present soap making. Files about soap making Including an FAQ. Note for UK readers I think Lye is made from wood ash.

Database

The database has more details on these plants: Aesculus hippocastanum, Ceanothus cuneatus, Chlorogalum pomeridianum, Lychnis flos-cuculi, Philadelphus lewisii, Pteridium aquilinum, Saponaria officinalis, Yucca gloriosa.

Readers Comments

Soap Plants

Anita Olson & Mary Boyer Sun Mar 19 22:31:25 2000

Please inform us on anything dealing with the Soapweed Plant grown in the Nebraska Sandhills area of Nebraska. (Yucca Glauca) We also would like any information on transplanting, growing from seed, harvesting (time, etc.), rules, laws and regulations. We appreciate any information that you can provide for us. Thank you, soapweed@aol.com or BoyerEnt1@aol.com

Soap Plants

lisa mercardo Wed Apr 12 21:26:12 2000

Its very good.

But we like to know the pollution related to soil and how can soap affects the plants?

Thank you

Soap Plants

Michelle Tue Apr 24 02:34:39 2001

Great site! Do you have information on an asian soap plant that has a green nut which, when opened, has a liquid inside that is used as soap/shampoo?

Soap Plants

Marie Sun Feb 9 15:02:46 2003

Hi, Yes, lye can be made from wood ash, but it is much easier to use caustic soda, available in supermarkets. Nasty stuff in itself, but essential to the soap-making process and fine once you've used it!

Soap Plants

bob Wed Jan 14 03:37:47 2004

hi i am bob i had a plant called soap root and it actualy made soap so i coud clean my hands with it it was one of the best disscovery i have ever made i infact did not even now that it was possible for a plant to produce soap from its root so from that day on i liked to use the soap root plant for my soap

Soap Plants

alexis Tue Jun 15 22:50:13 2004

Thanks Marie for the info on making lye from caustic soda......but does anyone know how caustic soda is made...and how environmentally friendly is it/its manfuacturing process?

Soap plants

Bruno Tardat Thu Oct 27 2005

Nice info about the horse chestnut, i knew about the soapnut from the Sapindus Mukorossi wich i am selling in Sweden as detergent but i totally ignored the properties of the chestnut... It seems one could use sliced chestnut in a cotton bag for the laundry, then there is the smell. Something to check up on. But what about letting out saponins amongst frogs or other water living animals? bruno@lavano.se

Soap plants

Bup Oyesiku Mon Dec 19 2005

Nice site to visit for information on secondary metabolites

Soap plants

Thu Jan 19 2006

this site is pretty rubbish it has no amount of educational value

Soap plants

joseph seery Thu Mar 30 2006

its the first time that i have this site.most informative. iam a serious student on the use of plants for medicinal purposes.

Soap plants

T.Paxworth Tue Jun 20 2006

I have been doing some workk in africa and discoverd a plant in a temple that maybe help with skin cancer

Soap plants

Paulo Bessa Mon Feb 5 2007

I assume natural soaps, i.e. made from caustic soda, an oil and a natural plant scent are rather environmental friendly if not used in excess. As all things in nature everything can be metabolized sooner or later, some things more easily than other. The proble, is when humans use damp large ammounts of some things which make things rather difficult to be assimilated in the enviromental and then creates what we know as pollution. There is no soap that does not create pollution, but natural ones create much less than conventional ones which include rather toxic things such as sodium lauryl sulfate and other chemicals. These are use to create lots of foaming. Saponins I dont know how much they will affect the enviromental. Probably I assume it will be a rather enviromental-friendly soap.

Soap plants

Pamela Tue Feb 13 2007

Don't forget about soapwort (Saponaria officinalis). It's terrific for making soap!

Soap plants

Cleon Alexander Mon Mar 5 2007

I want to know where I can buy Amole root, soap plant root,soaproot bulb,guaiac leaves,quiillai bark, red campion root, saltbush root,soapberry fruit,soap pod fruit,soap tree, soapwort root,soap lilly and wild gourd fruit. Thanks so much for whoever can help me buy these hearbs. Are there herbs I can use to harden my homemade soap? I

Soap plants

Sun Jun 24 2007

Your site is very informative, thanks for all the information you have provided. I want to make bath soap but would prefer to use the natural plant. I notice that you stated that soap plant t is toxic. If these are toxic, are they safe to use in bath products. If so, I would like to know of a reputable supplier in New York where I can purchase soapnut, soapberry fruit soap pod fruit guaiac leaves soaproot bulb, acacia concinna soapwort root, amole,and magave karatu. Thanks Joyce

Soap plants

James Bailey Sat Aug 11 2007

I want to know where I can buy amole root, soap plant root or any other type of suddening plant that I can add to shampoo in order wash out deposits from the surfactant in order to create a shampoo that will allow hair follicals to breathe. Are there any places in central or northern California where I can purchase these items. I can be cantacted at the E-mail address below.

Soap plants

Charles Tue Sep 18 2007

I am with a Engineers Without Borders team interested in developing natural soap in Haiti's Bayonaise Valley. Can you give me an idea of what plants may be there that we can use?

Soap plants

Stewart Sun Nov 4 2007

In reference to Marie's comment-Lye and caustic soda are the same thing. Next, you do not need lye to make soap. Our ancestors did it, because they made it from animal fat. All you need is a source of saponins, water, some kind of scent and a caking agent, such as oatmeal or starch. You heat the water, steep with the plants that produce your saponins, careful not to heat too long or boil, since the saponins will break down. You take the resultant water, mix with your scent, which could be vanilla, lemon, lemongrass, or some other scent you like. Then take the resulting fluid and mix into forms with your caking agent, let dry or bake on very low temp or in the sun until dry-that should function like soap. Basically, all soap is saponin and scent.

Soap plants

C Mon Jan 28 2008

Soaps made from saponins and soaps made from lye and fat are made by entirely different processes. Nearly all soaps sound in the store are made from lye and fat. You cannot make soap from fat without using a strong alkaline like lye or wood ash. In soap, the fat is chemically changed. Without the alkaline, it's only fat. Lye that comes from wood ash is milder than that made from soda, because it's impure. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soap Saponin based soaps are very mild. I've never heard of saponin plants being added to conventional soap. I would imagine the mild saponin would be hardly noticeable in the comparatively strong soap. Saponin plants are toxic if ingested, not when applied to the skin. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saponin Detergents are yet another substance, they are neither soaps nor saponins. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detergent

Soap plants

m murray Thu Feb 7 2008

just as a note caustic soda is in fact electrocuted salt and does occur naturally by the seaside after lightning storms ! It is made commercially by the same process of electrocuting salt. As for the comment about the poison osf saponin, yes it is but it is not easy to absorb into human body which is why children who take it upon themselves to eat a bar of soap may not feel too good but they dont die! Fish are very sensitive to saponins and easily absorb it and that is why it kills them! Also no one here seems to mention the soapnut tree from India look it up on internet many suppliers are offering this and it really does make suds and can be used in washing machine, i've done it it works. The amole root lily plant can be grown easily from seed look on the internet but it will be several years before you can start harvesting, mine are about four years old now and may soon be usable.

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