Wingleaf Soapberry
Sapindus saponariaWingleaf Soapberry is a tree native to the Texas Hill Country that grows 10–50 ft tall and 12 ft wide. It wants full sun and low water, and handles caliche and clay soil. Blooms white in spring. Good for birds and butterflies.
Toxic — people, pets. Saponins in the fruit — soapberry, irritant and mildly toxic.
Will it grow in your yard?
Enter your ZIP. The finder checks Wingleaf Soapberry against your microclimate, then ranks it against your sun, your watering and deer pressure.
The facts
4 sources- Type
- Tree
- Sun
- Full sun (6–8 hrs of direct sun)
- Water
- Low
- Height
- 10–50 ft
- Spread
- 12 ft
- Bloom
- Spring · white
- Foliage
- Deciduous or dies back in winter
- Soil
- Takes caliche and clay · recorded on caliche, clay, dry, limestone, loam, moist, sand, well drained
- Wildlife
- Supports birds and butterflies
Where it grows
Recorded in these EPA Level IV ecoregions in the Austin and Hill Country launch area:
9 occurrence records in Central Texas (GBIF).
Can you buy it?
Also grows here — hard to find. Native and recorded growing in Central Texas, but not on the grower stock lists we read. Sourcing varies: some are stocked widely, others you will have to hunt for.