Chlorogalum pomeridianum var. pomeridianum

Common soap plant

Family: Agavaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Common soap plant is a California native perennial found in northwestern California, Sierra Nevada foothills, northern Sierra Nevada, western Great Valley, central western, and southwestern California in open grassland, chaparral, and woodland habitats at elevations below 1,900 meters. Flowering from May to August, this plant produces white to pale lavender flowers on tall, branching inflorescences up to 2.5 meters high. Growing with a distinctive bulb wrapped in coarse, fibrous layers, it develops an impressive flowering stalk with multiple spreading branches. Its long, linear leaves emerge from the base of the plant, often twisting and curling as they grow. The plant produces a bulb with numerous tough, stringy fibers that were traditionally used by indigenous communities for soap-making and other practical purposes.

Habitat: Common. Open grassland, chaparral, woodland, sometimes on serpentine

Bloom period: May-Aug

Elevation: < 1900 m

Bioregions: NW, SNF, n SNH, w GV, CW, SW

California counties: Tulare, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Kern, Nevada, Mariposa, Amador, Santa Cruz, Butte, El Dorado, Tuolumne, Sonoma, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Lake, Fresno, Mendocino, Solano, San Luis Obispo, Orange, Ventura, Placer, Marin, Contra Costa, Tehama, Yuba, Monterey, Humboldt, Alameda, Napa, Stanislaus, Merced, Glenn, Sierra, Calaveras, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Trinity, Siskiyou, Yolo, Colusa

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.