SOAP-PLANT. AMOLE (Chlordgalum pomeridianum, Kunth.). 

 Flowers opening in the afternoon, of 6 white, recurving seg- 

 ments, veined with purple, borne in a loose, spreading panicle 

 at the top of an almost leafless stem sometimes 5 feet high. The 

 basal leaves are very characteristic, 8 to 18 inches long, 

 to 1 inch broad, crinkly and wavy-margined, usually flat to 

 the ground, noticeable for months before the flowering stem 

 appears. Of wide distribution throughout California, on 

 plains and dry hillsides; blooming from May to July. 



Few wild plants have played so conspicuous a part in the 

 human activities of the Pacific Coast as this, because of its 

 bottle-shaped bulb, deep-buried and hidden within a coarse, 

 fibrous, brown jacket. This fibre was utilized for brushes by 

 the aborigines. The bulb itself contains a thick juice which 

 when cooked has value as a glue. Of the roasted bulbs poul- 

 tices were made, and the fresh bulbs mashed and thrown into 

 a stream had the effect of temporarily stupifying fish, which 

 were then easily captured. Chlorogalum's most famous 

 use, however, is as soap. The mature bulb is rich in saponin, 

 and when crushed and rubbed up in water produces a cleans- 

 ing lather. Amole (a-m6la) is the Spanish name for the plant. 



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