Soapwort is also called "Bouncing Bet" and "Lady by the garden gate" it is native of Europe that has naturalized. The plants are often are seen growing along roadsides, waste places, and railroad tracks and are considered weedy by some. In the landscape under cultivation, it is an upright pretty perennial with pink, rose or white clusters of flowers. Soapworts get their name because they contain saponins in the plant sap which lathers when used for washing. It tolerates light foot traffic.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Alkaline (>8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage
Available space
12 inches-3 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 1 ft. 0 in. - 2 ft. 6 in. | Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 1 ft. 6 in.
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Opposite
Leaf shape
Lanceolate; Ovate
Leaf margin
Entire; Undulate
Leaf size
1-3 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Simple, smooth margin. Palmately veined. 2-3" pairs of broadly lance-shaped leaves that have 3-5 ribs.
Flower color
Pink; White
Flower shape
Tubular
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
A small cluster of flowers appear at the top of the stem. The flower measures about 1-inch across and have 5 notched petals in shades of pink to white. Behind the flower is a slender, 1-inch long, tubular calyx that is light green to reddish and has 5 short teeth.
Bloom time
Summer
Fruit type
Capsule
Stem color
Green
Stem detail
The stems are erect and smooth. The stems may be reddish tinged.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
Europe to Caucasus
Distribution
Naturalized throughout many parts of the United States and North America