barilla Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun bushy plant of Old World salt marshes and sea beaches having prickly leaves; burned to produce a crude soda ash
Salsola soda; kelpwort; kali; Salsola kali; saltwort; glasswort.
noun Algerian plant formerly burned to obtain calcium carbonate
Halogeton souda.

Sp. barrilla.

(Bot.) A name given to several species of Salsola from which soda is made, by burning the barilla in heaps and lixiviating the ashes.
(Com.) (a) The alkali produced from the plant, being an impure carbonate of soda, used for making soap, glass, etc., and for bleaching purposes. (b) Impure soda obtained from the ashes of any seashore plant, or kelp. Ure.