Detergent from soapwort. How does one make it keep?

jowitt.europe

I have read different recipes about making detergent and washing liquid from soapwort. I have harvested the whole plant except roots. I want to have it next year as well. Then chopped. Boiled for 30 minutes, left it overnight. I will blender, strain and then??? I want it keep for a long time as I have made 6-7 Liters.

i have read one recipe that I should add vinegar against mould. Another recipe is with Alkohol. Could anybody, please, tell me proportions? Thank you!!!

jowitt.europe

No suggestions 😕.... Well, I had to find a solution myself. I heated the liquid. Actually I brought it to boil and I poured into pre heated to 90 C jars and coved with pre heated screw cap. The jars I store in the cellar. I will see whether it works.

And another set of glasses are sitting in the freezer.

i am curious how it works in the end. 😊

Torey

Looking forward to hearing your results.

gardneto76

How easy is soapworts to grow? That is one I have not tried yet.

jowitt.europe

@gardneto76 very easy. It grows in my flower bed together with oregano, mint, echinacea... and it is a beautiful flower

blevinandwomba

Could you boil it down some to concentrate, and then freeze it?

I know some essential oils are preservative.

When I used to make soapnut shampoo I made it concentrated and kept it in the fridge. It kept a week, if memory serves me right.

jowitt.europe

@blevinandwomba thank you! That’s a good idea. I can try out. I will compare which of the methods works for me best. But, most probably, next time I will simply dry the herb and boil only the quantity needed for the washing.

aurora.rebecca

Anything made with water is prone to spoilage.

I have read of the use of potassium sorbate as a preservative in natural cosmetics

here is a useful link

https://www.luisafanzani.com/natural-preservatives-for-cosmetics/

but it the easiest would to make small batches as needed and to dry the soapwort for the months that it isn’t available fresh.

If you have an excess you could spray it on your plants if you have any pest problems due to its saponin content

marjstratton

I would imagine that it wouldn't work in a dish washer. Has anyone tried?

LaurieLovesLearning

What an interesting question.

jowitt.europe

@marjstratton I did try it out as a dishwasher. It works.

marjstratton

The reason for the question was, once years ago, I had run out of dishwasher detergent. Well, I thought, just put in some regular dish soap. What a mess! So, it sounds like there might be an alternative to the expensive and questionable commercial products.

jowitt.europe

@marjstratton I am sure that there are many natural alternatives. They are, of course, more time consuming, need some knowledge and experimenting, but all this gives a good feeling that one has done something good for the nature and for oneself.

gardneto76

@jolanta.wittib that looks like a weed I have seen growing around my moms house! Beautiful little flowers.

karenjanicki

I would probably make smaller batches, just enough for a weeks worth or so to keep in the fridge. I would dehydrate the plant myself and then just craft on demand batches. I think it might be difficult to preserve it for too long without adding harsh chemicals? Also it could take up alot of storage which I'm always short on haha. I ordered soapwort seeds this year and hope to plant them next season :).

jowitt.europe

@karenjanicki you are absolutely right. This is what I have learned from my mistake of doing all in one go. The rest of the plants I have dried and I will cook them on the day I need to do my laundry.

The liquid which I prepared mid August kept relatively good. I am still using it. I have not tried out the liquid which I still keep in the freezer.