Soapberry Plants ...

[BadgeBunny]

Soapberry is a common roadside plant here in Oklahoma. FYI: THIS PLANT IS POISONOUS, SO DO NOT EAT AND DO NOT ALLOW CHILDREN AROUND THE PLANTS. It looks like this, in case you don't know ...

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You can use the berries in place of soap. Want to grow your own soapberry plants?? I'm pretty sure you can do it from cuttings but ... given that when I harvested my soapberries a couple of weekends ago the plants were fully dormant I didn't figure I'd have much luck so I looked on line to see if I could figure out how to germinate the soapberry seeds I harvested. Here's what I found out ...

First you have to clean all the fruit off the seed with a paring knife and then scrub any bits left. The seed needs to be completely clean to avoid rot. Then scarify the surface of the seed. Mix the seed with lightly moistened peat moss, place in a ziplock bag, seal and put in the back of the refrigerator for 40 to 60 days.

Remove seeds from refrigerator after a minimum of 40 days, immerse seeds in boiling water and leave them for 24 hours. Drain and change water after 24 hour period. Leave seeds soaking, changing water every 24 hours until the hard exterior softens. When the exterior is soft, peel away the skin. This will reveal the embryo underneath.

Plant embryo 3/4 inch deep in a pot filled with potting soil immediately. Press soil over seed and mist until evenly moist. Place pot where temp stays no lower than 70-75 degrees F. Plant should germinate within 7 days.

Keep soil moist. Keep in pots until they are 5 inches tall, at which time you can transplant to outside, as long as temperatures are above 70 degrees F.

Now ... I dunno how good this works, but we are about to find out ... This is Day 1 in the fridge ...

 

[Lurker66]

That prolly what was in that brown wine i drank.

 

[daniel1daniel2]

Do you need to do anything to the "fruit" before using it as soap or just use it as it is?

 

[BadgeBunny]

That prolly what was in that brown wine i drank.

Bwahahahahahaha!! No kidding!!

Do you need to do anything to the "fruit" before using it as soap or just use it as it is?

Nope. Just drop it into a jar of water, shake until sudsy and then pour into wash water. (Don't put the berries in the wash, otherwise you'll wind up picking the piece out of our laundry.) I guess you could also put them in a cotton bag like they do the soap nuts, I hadn't really thought of that until just this second.

 

[turkeyrun]

Have been using soapnuts for a long time. Tried planting the seeds several times, but nothing ever came up. Will be watching to see your development and prolly trying some myself. May have to saddle up and ride the pasture, may already have some growning out there and didn't even know it.