What Are Soap Nuts?

Soap nuts are known around the world as many different names. Soapberry, soap nut husk, Ritha (Hindi) nut shell, wash shells, soap nut shells, Chinese soapberry and washing nuts just to name a few. Only within the past few years has the concept of a 100% natural, chemical free, biodegradable cleanser become conceivable to Americans. It is most commonly used in India, China, parts of Europe, and numerous countries in the eastern hemisphere. There is also a species, Quillaja Saponaria (called a soap bark tree) that grows in South America. Sapindus Mukorossi is the botanical name of the soapberry that we provide you. Sapindus Trifoliatus is used in medicine. The botanical name comes from the Latin words sapo (soap) and indicus (Indian). These premier soapberries are grown on trees in the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains by local farmers. The trees grow to 10 to 20 meters in height and begin flowering and bearing fruit after about 9 years. It blooms with small, grouped white flowers in the spring and is harvested annually in the fall. The tree synthesizes its own saponins which coat the shell of the nut. The Sapindus Mukorossi will produce soap nuts for about 90 years. The soapberries contain the all important saponins that naturally lift dirt, clean clothes, and leave your clothes soft and refreshed. Soap nuts can replace many chemical detergents such as those containing sodium laureth sulfate (SLS) that are becoming widely known by customers for being a skin irritant and health hazard. The soapberries do carry a faint vinegar-like odor prior to the wash but leave your clothes smelling perfectly odorless afterward.

Soap Nut Tree Species:

The Sapindus Mukorossi variety of soap nuts produces the highest and most consistent quality of high saponin content. India, Indonesia, and Pakistan all provide a smaller tree known as the Sapindus Trifoliatus. All soap nuts throughout the world bear the important saponins. The more saponin a soap nut has, the higher the quality. Soap Nut Trading Co. provides you with the highest quality selection. A branch species, Sapindus Saponaria, is grown in the United States, known as the Wingleaf Soapberry and the Florida Soap Berry Tree. The Sapindus Mukorossi species only grows in Asia but nothing says that it cannot be cultivated elsewhere.