What is a soap plant?

Answer 1

The Soap Plant or Amole

Chlorogalum pomeridianum

The leaves of the soap plant grow up to 2 feet long and lay flat on the ground. when these leaves start to wither a stout stem up to 4 feet high rises from the root stalk. small blue veined white flowers grow along this stalk, opening for a short time during the afternoon. The descriptive name, pomeridianum, means "opening in the afternoon." A big deeply seated bulb is covered with coarse fibers.

American Indians used this plant in many ways. The bulb was baked and eaten, the rough fibers made brushes, crushed, the bulb made a soapy lather that they used as a shampoo. This was also used to help catch fish as its introduction into the water around the fish interfered with the fishes being able to breathe. The bulb also made a a very effective glue that had many different uses. The crushed bulb was used to relieve sores, poison oak rash and to relieve rheumatic pains and cramps. Very young shoots proved to be a very sweet food when cooked slowly in a pit oven. When still young, the fresh green leaves were sometimes eaten raw. The older leaves were used for wrapping acorn bread during baking. Juice from the leaves was pricked into the skin for green tattoo markings.

Answer 2

Yes, it is.

Almost all human materials for hygene are made of plants