It’s not just food you can get out of our native plants. Stuck for soap or laundry detergent? Here’s two plants you can find in most places that will sort you out with soap.

Horse chestnut and Ivy both contain saponins. These are technically mild poisons. The plant makes them to prevent you eating it. As anyone who’s ever had their mouth washed out with soap as a child knows, saponins taste horrible!

Horse chestnut is otherwise known as the “conker tree”. A favourite of children everywhere, and banned in most schools due to black eyes and bashed heads. Conkers are best gathered in Autumn, but leaves can be used in Spring And Summer.

Ivy can be found draped over shady walls and fences. It is evergreen and not edible. (Just in case you weren’t sure.) As it is evergreen, it can be used all year round, which is handy.

Even some edible plants contain saponins. Quinoa seeds and all plants in their family of Chenopodiums all have a coating of saponin on their seeds. This stops birds eating the seeds. When we grew our own quinoa, we needed to wash the seeds by heating them in water and throwing away the water at least 3 times. With store bought quinoa, this has already been done for you.

Soapwort (Saponaria officinalis) is a pretty pink flowered plant. It’s in the Pink family of plants, too! It’s mainly a garden escape in Britain. You can find it in damp woodlands and verges.

Soapwort has a long history of being used for soap. You can use the leaves or the roots. Bear in mind though, that digging up wild plants for their roots is illegal unless you have the landowner’s permission. Use the leaves if you can, and allow the plant to survive for next season.

Boil the leaves, then strain off the liquid. Voila! Soap that is so gentle, you can use it on your face. Museum conservators use soapwort to clean delicate tapestries when conventional soap might damage them.

Anyway…on to the soap test…

CONKER SOAP

First I made conker soap. All you do is this:

1. Gather a jug full of conkers
2. Using a sharp knife or breadknife, saw through them so they are in quarters.
3. You can choose to pick off the brown outer shell, but its not really necessary.
4. Cut up a lemon or lime and add to the cut-up conkers. OPTIONAL, but it smells nicer!
5. Boil them in a jug full of water (500ml), then simmer for 15 minutes.
6. Allow to cool, then strain off the water.
7. Bottle. Give it a shake and watch the saponins foam!

IVY SOAP

Next up was ivy. Handily, there is a wall of ivy right next to my boat.

1. Cut off 60 ivy leaves.
2. Rinse them to remove insects and dirt.
3. Cut or tear them up with hands or scissors.
4. Place in a saucepan with 500ml (a jug) of cold water.
5. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Allow to cool, then leave it all in the pan overnight.
7. In the morning, strain off the liquid and bottle.

Ivy soap has a distinctive vegetal woodland scent that you will either love or hate. A bit like Marmite. Just don’t do what i did once and leave the boiled leaves in water on the roof for several weeks. They then make an admirable stink bomb ingredient.

Now for the test…would it clean my washing up?

The answer for both Conker and Ivy soap is yes. Even greasy frying pans! The only point I’ll make is you need to use about half a cup full of it instead of the tiny squidge you use for conventional washing-up liquid.

My hands felt ok afterwards too. I don’t wear washing-up gloves. As saponins are mild poisons (as is washing up liquid) be sure to rinse your plates and cups with plain water afterwards.

These soaps are kinder to the environment and carbon neutral. They haven’t been carted in from across the planet. You can pick them from your back garden.

You can use these soaps as laundry liquid too. Conkers can be used as hand soap. You can make this thicker by adding powdered linseed if you want.

(The Italians that run the laundrette are used to me by now…)

Have fun!

xx Hedgewitch Kat xx