Yucca Root Shampoo on Natural Hair

In October, I started a personal protective style challenge with the intention of improving my length retention and the overall health of my hair.  As part of this challenge, I set out to use natural shampoos to cleanse my hair so that I wouldn’t have to take down my protective style each week.  I came across yucca root during my research and I was intrigued to learn how to use yucca root shampoo on my natural 4c natural hair.

What Is Yucca?

Yucca is a perennial shrub that native to the hot and dry parts of North and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean.  It’s commonly grown as an ornamental garden plant. 

Yucca root contains compounds called saponins, which produce foam when shaken in water and act as surfactants or mild detergents.  It’s used by Native communities as a natural laundry soap and natural shampoo. Yucca is thought to be useful in treating dandruff, hair loss, and inflammation, among other things. With a natural pH of around 5, yucca root makes a great natural skin cleanser and shampoo since it doesn’t strip your skin or hair of their natural oils.

Yucca is often confused with cassava.  Though yucca and cassava (which is also known as yuca) look similar, the two plants are not the same.

Creating Yucca Root Shampoo

Making yucca root shampoo only requires two ingredients:  distilled water and yucca root.  The process of making this shampoo is straightforward. 

NOTE:  This shampoo can be made with fresh or powdered yucca root.

Directions

1.  Place 2 tablespoons of dried yucca root into a heat resistant container.

2.  Bring two cups of distilled water to a boil.

3.  Once the water has boiled, add it to the yucca root and allow it to cool or infuse it overnight.

4.  After the infusion has cooled, squeeze the cut pieces of yucca to extract the saponins from the root.  You will notice an abundance of suds forming as you do this.

5.  After a few minutes you can use a cheese/muslin cloth and/or a coffee filter to remove the yucca and sediments from the infusion.

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Customization

The wonderful thing about making your own herbal shampoo is that you can customize it for your hair and scalp.  Calendula, cornflower, and yarrow root are just a few herbs that can aid in scalp and hair health.  This soap has a mild woodsy scent and so you can use floral herbs or essential oils to infuse your favourite scent into your shampoo.

Recommended Batch Size

This shampoo is best when freshly made. For best results, use this shampoo immediately.

Using Yucca Root Shampoo on Natural Hair

This shampoo is really easy to use and can be applied to the hair in the same way that you would apply a tea rinse. 

Yucca root creates quite a bit of suds as you’re making your batch of shampoo, but the suds do not last for very long.  Since this soap is a mild cleanser, you might find it better to use it on hair that doesn’t have a lot of product or buildup.

Double Bowl Method

The first method of application requires the use of two bowls.  Place the yucca root shampoo into one bowl then place the second bowl in a sink or bathtub.  Hold your hair over the bowl that you’ve place in the bathtub and then pour the shampoo over your hair.  The bowl in the tub will catch the runoff shampoo.  As you’re pouring the shampoo over your hair be sure to scrub your scalp. Once all of the runoff is in the bowl, exchange the bowls and start the process again until your scalp and hair have been thoroughly cleansed.  Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water. 

Applicator Bottle Method

The second method of application is much easier to use, especially if you’re short on space.  Pour the yucca shampoo into an applicator bottle, then apply the shampoo to your scalp and hair.  The nozzle is great for getting the shampoo directly to your roots, especially if you’re wearing breaded hair styles.  Be sure to scrub your scalp and squeeze the shampoo along the length of your hair. 

I personally like to leave the shampoo on my hair for a few minutes before rinsing thoroughly with lukewarm water. 

Results of Yucca Root Shampoo on Natural Hair

I was really pleased with the results of this DIY shampoo.  My hair felt cleansed, but not stripped.  I have been using these natural shampoos on my children’s hair as well and I noticed that where soapwort root shampoo made my daughter’s hair quite soft, smooth, and elongated, yucca root tightened her curls in a way that reminded me of clay washing.  I can’t wait to try the two of these together to see what the result will be. 

Even though I didn’t follow the shampoo up with a rinse out conditioner, I did maintain my usual moisturizing routine.  My hair felt amazingly soft throughout the week.  I can’t wait to use yucca root shampoo, again.

Have you ever washed your hair with yucca root shampoo?