WHY make your own soap, lotion, etc?

[Blaundee]

Welcome! Home made soap can be liquid OR solid. Sort of off topic a little, but has anyone ever made soap from yucca root? I've heard it is better and safer than lye soap?

I would love to try it, but as yucca is our state flower, it is illegal to dig it up here.

Actually that is 100% false, just an urban legend. Sure, it is your state flower but as such it is not protected. You can verify this by contacting your DNR, forestry department or whatever version of them you have there.

They are the ones who told me it's illegal

 

[ThrottleJockey]

I would love to try it, but as yucca is our state flower, it is illegal to dig it up here.

Actually that is 100% false, just an urban legend. Sure, it is your state flower but as such it is not protected. You can verify this by contacting your DNR, forestry department or whatever version of them you have there.

They are the ones who told me it's illegal

Perhaps they were referring to public lands? I have found some references to harvesting guidelines in AZ and southern CA but nothing on record for NM and even the references I have found only apply to mojave yucca, not the other subspecies. Besides, it isn't humanly possible to kill a yucca, I've tried.

 

[Blaundee]

Actually that is 100% false, just an urban legend. Sure, it is your state flower but as such it is not protected. You can verify this by contacting your DNR, forestry department or whatever version of them you have there.

They are the ones who told me it's illegal

Perhaps they were referring to public lands? I have found some references to harvesting guidelines in AZ and southern CA but nothing on record for NM and even the references I have found only apply to mojave yucca, not the other subspecies. Besides, it isn't humanly possible to kill a yucca, I've tried.

To use yucca for soap you use the root, which kills it. You mash the root and dry it, then use it like powder soap.

 

[ThrottleJockey]

They are the ones who told me it's illegal

Perhaps they were referring to public lands? I have found some references to harvesting guidelines in AZ and southern CA but nothing on record for NM and even the references I have found only apply to mojave yucca, not the other subspecies. Besides, it isn't humanly possible to kill a yucca, I've tried.

To use yucca for soap you use the root, which kills it. You mash the root and dry it, then use it like powder soap.

Correct, the rhizome is used, even in a small yucca though, the rhizome is around 5-6 feet long/deep. It won't kill it, trust me. They are sort of like cattails, even a tiny part of the root left in the ground will make the darned thing come back in spades!

 

[~gd]

Call this a draw. Yes some yucca are protected [the Josha Tree in many states besides NM] NM does not state just which of this broad family bears their state flower. Despite what TJ says they aren't that hard to kill, you just have to water them heavy enough to drown the rhizome during their dormant period. That is why the tree is protected, too many fools thought the trees looked cool so they tried to move them. What do you do when you move a normal bush? You water the thing which kills many yucca. They are slow growers to which is another reason to water it to death.[you kill cattails by starving them for water during their growth period...they survive by dumping their last bit of life into the tails which produce millions of seeds to be spread by the wind even the cattails tend to go dormant when their water source goes dry. ~gd