Red Hills soap plant facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Chlorogalum grandiflorum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Asparagaceae
Subfamily:	Agavoideae
Genus:	Chlorogalum
Species:	C. grandiflorum
Binomial name
Chlorogalum grandiflorum Hoover
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The Chlorogalum grandiflorum is a type of flowering plant often called the Red Hills soap plant. It is a special plant that only grows in one area. This area is the Sierra Nevada foothills in California. You can find it in places like the Red Hills (Tuolumne County). It likes to grow in chaparral (a type of shrubland), woodlands, and forests.

What is the Red Hills Soap Plant?

The Red Hills soap plant is a rare and interesting wildflower. It grows back year after year, which means it's a perennial. It gets its name "soap plant" because its bulb (the underground part) can be used to make a soap-like lather.

What the Red Hills Soap Plant Looks Like

This plant grows from a round, underground part called a bulb. The bulb can be up to 7 centimeters (about 3 inches) wide. It has a red or brown coating. The leaves grow from the base of the plant and have cool, wavy edges.

The plant sends up a tall flower stalk, which can be as long as a meter (about 3 feet). This stalk holds many flowers. Each flower has six petal-like parts called tepals. These tepals are white with a purple line down the middle. They are thin, about 3 centimeters long, and curl back when the flower opens.

When the Flowers Bloom

One cool thing about these flowers is that they are "ephemeral." This means they don't last long! Each flower opens in the evening as the sun sets. Then, it closes by the next morning. So, if you want to see them open, you need to look in the evening!

Inside each flower, there are six stamens. These are the parts that hold the pollen. They have yellow tips called anthers. After the flower is pollinated, it forms a small fruit. This fruit is a capsule and is just over half a centimeter long.