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Show Moab Happenings April 1998 5A c String and Suds and Yucca Spuds by Damian Fagan Yucca Dew Shampoo, remember it9 Made from real yucca plants this shampoo produced great w hite foams of lather and reportedly left the hair glossy and soft However, the of this product "discovery could be traced to the centuries-ol- d use of yucca soap by indigenous peoples of the American Southwest Scveial different species of yucca plants grow throughout the Four Coiners Dagger-lik- e Region leaves grow in tight p clusters called loscttes and the leaf's waxy coating also helps to i educe water loss to the air Deep, stout taproots pencil ate the soil in ft', search ol moisture where this hardy desert r?' plant thru es in this land of little rain But when the k jjt conditions are right, generally after a wet winter or spring, the plants send up flower stalks that bear dense clusters of candles burning in the waxy flowers Like white-ho- t the have a deseit, special relationship with a plants of who don't get burned in moths particular group the flames Female pronuba moths gather small balls of pollen as they visit mature yucca flowers The female then selects a plant to pollinate, and in the process deposits her eggs within the ovary of the flower Her growing larvae will feed upon some of the developing seeds before they move down the stalk to pupate in the ground This specialized partnership, or symbiosis, twines together plant and insect in an ancient ritual bell-shape- d, Also closely tied to this plant were the early Native Americans who roamed this country For them the yucca played a veiy important role in then daily lives So impoitant was this plant, that it is one of the tew wild plants represented symbolically in rock art panels For starters, these What role did the plant serve desert dwellers split the tough yucca leaves into line fibrous lengths. The strands were then wmven or plaited together to form one of the most basic, but critical, elements of their cultures - cordage Belts, rope ladders, sandals, toe cords, head sashes for carrying heavy loads, straps, nets, and snares are some of the documented uses of this cordage Some sandals had distinctive sole patterns, like modern day Nike or Reebok shoes, that may have identified the status of the particular wearer Other uses included paintbrushes, food and soap Native American women chew'ed the tip of a yucca leaf until it was finely frayed to form a paintbrush suitable lor use in painting pottery The large, fleshy fruits (yucca spuds) of the datil or banana yucca (Yucca baccaia) were eaten raw or dried for winter use And from the saponin roots came soap Similar to the (soapy glucosides)-richuge summer thunderheads that punfy the air with rain, the Native Amencans believed, and some still practice today, that the soapy lather of the yucca would cleanse and purify the spirit Today, modern day chemists have isolated these sudsy forming compounds and added them to shampoos and even a root beer (Shasta) to create products that have their roots in ancient times h photos by Damian Fagan Canyonlands Hiding Gear ... Camping Equipment ,'' A Fishing Tackle " jiiats HuntingjSupplies Cast Iron Cookware V Horse Tack L-- & ( Outpost Glove$ Game Licenses 91 intoTrestricted backcountrylareag In the Heart of Canyon Country at Canyonlands National Park Needles District ,702 South Main (B3E 5206916199 Hours 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Full Store & Grill Camping Facilities ' Nightly Star Gazing 8" telescope designed and custom-mad- by e (Millers Shopping Center) Astronomy Magazine (435) 2595731 Enjoy the drive south of Moab on Highway 191. Take Newspaper Rock turnoff at Highway 211. Open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. every dSy for more information call our cellular phone . Continue out to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park (about 34 miles). (801) 979-400- 7 |