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Taxon:  Saponaria officinalis L.



Summary
Genus:
Saponaria
Family:
Caryophyllaceae
Subfamily:
Caryophylloideae
Tribe:
Caryophylleae
Nomen number:
33108
Place of publication:
Sp. pl. 1:408. 1753
Verified:
04/22/2012 ARS Systematic Botanists.
Accessions:
0 (0  active, 0  available) in National Plant Germplasm System. 
Other conspecific taxa
Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations
Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Saponaria officinalis L. var. glaberrima Ser.
No images


Reference(s)
  1. Aldén, B., S. Ryman & M. Hjertson. Våra kulturväxters namn - ursprung och användning. Formas, Stockholm (Handbook on Swedish cultivated and utility plants, their names and origin). 2009
  2. Allan, H. H. B. et al. Flora of New Zealand. 1961-
  3. Angely, J. A. Flora analitica do Parana. 1965
  4. Backer, C. A. & R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. Flora of Java. 1963-1968
  5. Bisset, N. G., ed. Herbal drugs and phytopharmaceuticals. A handbook for practice on a scientific basis. 1994
  6. Blumenthal, M., ed. The complete German Commission E monographs: therapeutic guide to herbal medicines. 1998
  7. Burbidge, N. T. & M. Gray. Flora of the Australian Capital Territory. 1970
  8. Cabrera, A. L. & E. M. Zardini. Manual de la flora de los alrededores de Buenos Aires. 1978
  9. Cabrera, A. L., ed. Flora de la provincia de Buenos Aires. 1965-1970
  10. Davis, P. H., ed. Flora of Turkey and the east Aegean islands. 1965-1988
  11. Demilly, D. et al. Liste alphabétique des principales espèces de plantes cultivées et de mauvaises herbes. Noms latins et noms français, ed. 7. 2001
  12. Duke, J. A. et al. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs. 2002
  13. Duncan, W. H. & J. T. Kartesz. Vascular flora of Georgia: an annotated checklist. 1981
  14. Erhardt, W. et al. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen. 2008
  15. Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
  16. FNA Editorial Committee. Flora of North America. 1993-
  17. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
  18. Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
  19. Foster, S. & J. A. Duke. A field guide to medicinal plants: Eastern/Central North America, 2nd ed. 2000
  20. Gleason, H. A. & A. Cronquist. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada, ed. 2. 1991
  21. Grellin, J. K. & J. Philpott. A reference guide to medicinal plants. 1990
  22. Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984. Med-Checklist. 1984- 1:245.
  23. Hanelt, P., ed. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6. 2001
  24. Hansen, A. & P. Sunding. Flora of Macaronesia: checklist of vascular plants, ed. 4. Sommerfeltia vol. 17. 1993
  25. Harrington, H. Manual of the plants of Colorado. 1954
  26. Hegi, G. et al. 1979. Illustrierte Flora von Mittel-Europa. ed. 1:1906-1931; ed. 2:1936-68; ed. 3:1966- 3, 2:975.
  27. Hitchcock, C. L. et al. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. 1955-1969
  28. Huxley, A., ed. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening. 1992
  29. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares. 2008
  30. Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
  31. Iwatsuki, K. et al. Flora of Japan. 1993-
  32. Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. Atlas florae europaeae. 1972-
  33. Kearney, T. H. & R. H. Peebles. Arizona flora, ed. 2. 1969
  34. Kingsbury, J. M. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. 1964
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  37. Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. Hortus third. 1976
  38. Moerman, D. Native American ethnobotany, ed. 5. 1998
  39. Mun-Chan, B. et al. 1986. A checklist of the Korean cultivated plants. Kulturpflanze 34:127.
  40. Munz, P. A. & D. D. Keck. A California flora. 1959
  41. Munz, P. A. A flora of southern California. 1974
  42. Peirce, A. The American Pharmaceutical Association practical guide to natural medicines. 1999
  43. Pignatti, S. Flora d'Italia. 1982
  44. Radford, A. E. et al. Manual of the vascular flora of the Carolinas. 1964
  45. Rechinger, K. H., ed. Flora iranica. 1963-
  46. Seed Regulatory and Testing Division, Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S.D.A. State noxious-weed seed requirements recognized in the administration of the Federal Seed Act (updated annually).
  47. Stewart, R. An annotated catalogue of the vascular plants of West Pakistan and Kashmir. 1972
  48. Steyermark, J. A. Flora of Missouri. 1977
  49. Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. Flora europaea, second edition. 1993
  50. Uphof, J. C. T. Dictionary of economic plants, ed. 2. 1968
  51. Van Wyk, B.-E. & M. Wink. Medicinal plants of the world. 2004
  52. Vibrans, H., ed. Malezas de México (on-line resource).
  53. Welsh, S. L. & G. Moore. Utah Plants. 1973
  54. Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. World economic plants: a standard reference (on-line edition) [medicinal plants only].
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  56. Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. Flora of China (English edition). 1994-
Common names
English
bouncing-bet –
common soapwort –
soapwort –
French
saponaire officinale –
German
echtes Seifenkraut –
Japanese Rōmaji
sabonsō –
Swedish
såpnejlika –
Transcribed Chinese
fei zao cao –
Transcribed Korean
binupul –
Transliterated Russian
myl'njanka lekarstvennaja –
Distribution
order_codeStatusContinentSubcontinentCountryStateNote
1NativeAsia-TemperateCaucasusArmenia  
1NativeAsia-TemperateCaucasusAzerbaijan  
1NativeAsia-TemperateCaucasusGeorgia  
1NativeAsia-TemperateCaucasusRussian Federation-CiscaucasiaCiscaucasia 
1NativeAsia-TemperateSiberiaRussian Federation-Western SiberiaWestern Siberia 
1NativeAsia-TemperateWestern AsiaTurkey  
1NativeEuropeEast EuropeBelarus  
1NativeEuropeEast EuropeLithuania  
1NativeEuropeEast EuropeRussian Federation-European partEuropean part 
1NativeEuropeEast EuropeUkraine  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeAustria  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeBelgium  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeCzech Republic  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeGermany  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeHungary  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeNetherlands  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropePoland  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeSlovakia  
1NativeEuropeMiddle EuropeSwitzerland  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeAlbania  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeBosnia and Herzegovina  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeBulgaria  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeCroatia  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeGreece  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeItaly  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeMontenegro  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeNorth Macedonia  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeRomania  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeSerbia  
1NativeEuropeSoutheastern EuropeSlovenia  
1NativeEuropeSouthwestern EuropeFrance  
1NativeEuropeSouthwestern EuropePortugal  
1NativeEuropeSouthwestern EuropeSpain  
2Cultivated     
4NaturalizedAfricaMacaronesiaPortugalMadeira Islands 
4NaturalizedAustralasiaAustraliaAustralia  
4NaturalizedAustralasiaNew ZealandNew Zealand  
4NaturalizedEuropeEast EuropeEstonia  
4NaturalizedEuropeEast EuropeLatvia  
4NaturalizedEuropeNorthern EuropeDenmark  
4NaturalizedEuropeNorthern EuropeFinland  
4NaturalizedEuropeNorthern EuropeIreland  
4NaturalizedEuropeNorthern EuropeNorway  
4NaturalizedEuropeNorthern EuropeSweden  
4NaturalizedEuropeNorthern EuropeUnited Kingdom  
4NaturalizedNorthern America Canada  
4NaturalizedNorthern America Mexico  
4NaturalizedNorthern America United States  
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaBrazilBrazil  
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaSouthern South AmericaArgentina  
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaSouthern South AmericaChile  
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaSouthern South AmericaUruguay  
Native
Asia-Temperate
  • CAUCASUS: Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia [Ciscaucasia], Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia
  • SIBERIA: Russian Federation-Western Siberia [Western Siberia]
  • WESTERN ASIA: Turkey
Europe
  • EAST EUROPE: Russian Federation-European part [European part], Belarus, Lithuania, Ukraine
  • MIDDLE EUROPE: Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia
  • SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Croatia, Italy, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia
  • SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: Spain, France, Portugal
Cultivated ()
Naturalized
Africa
  • MACARONESIA: Portugal [Madeira Islands]
Australasia
  • AUSTRALIA: Australia
  • NEW ZEALAND: New Zealand
Europe
  • EAST EUROPE: Estonia, Latvia
  • NORTHERN EUROPE: Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, Sweden
Northern America
  • REGION: Canada, Mexico, United States
Southern America
  • BRAZIL: Brazil
  • SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Argentina, Chile, Uruguay
Economic Uses
UsageTypeNoteReference
Environmentalornamental Huxley, A., ed. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening. 1992
Medicinesfolklore Duke, J. A. et al. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs. 2002
Vertebrate poisonsmammals Kingsbury, J. M. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. 1964
Weedpotential seed contaminant FNA Editorial Committee. Flora of North America. 1993-
Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://ausgenebank.agriculture.vic.gov.au/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=33108. Accessed 3 April 2026.

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