Of course I don't make a habit of pillaging our precious, limited wilderness areas, but I also have it on good authority that soapwort is not a native species, so I allowed myself a minor pillage.
I prepared three jars, each containing 125 ml of cold water:
The first jar served as the control jar, with nothing but water. In the second I put a couple of soapwort leaves, and in the third a few drops of liquid soap. I shook the second and third jars twenty times each. (Twenty = Highly Scientific Number, chosen entirely at random.)
The liquid soap foamed up nicely, but the soapwort? Nothin'. I added a few more leaves and some flowers for good measure, and shook it quite a bit longer:
Still no sign of suds. On to Phase 2 of the experiment! I prepared three scraps of cloth, each stained with chocolate sauce and ketchup:
Each bit of cloth went into a jar and received twenty scientific shakes. All the water was murky afterwards:
I removed the bits of cloth and compared the results. Water on the left, soapwort in the middle, liquid soap on the right:
Finally, I rinsed each scrap in water and squeezed it out:
I don't know how well this comes across in the pictures, but -- blow me down! The soapwort is a clear winner, despite its lack of sudsing ability. Nature wins!
1 comment:
Interesting science. I've wondered about Soapwort but never done the experiment. I may have to try out some of the plants on our property now. Thanks for sharing!
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