Acorus calamus

Acorus calamus (also called sweet flag or

calamus, among many common names[2])
is a species of flowering plant, a tall
wetland monocot of the family Acoraceae,
in the genus Acorus. Although used in
traditional medicine over centuries to treat
digestive disorders and pain, there is no
clinical evidence for its safety or efficacy –
and ingested calamus may be toxic –
leading to its commercial ban in the United
States.[3]
 Sweet flag

Sweet flag

Conservation status

Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Plantae

Clade: Tracheophytes

Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots

Order: Acorales

Family: Acoraceae

Genus: Acorus
Species: A. calamus
Binomial name

Acorus calamus
L., 1753

Description
Inflorescence

Sweet flag is a herbaceous perennial, 2 m

(79 in) tall.[3] It resembles the iris, giving
the name flag iris, I. pseudacorus. It
consists of tufts of basal leaves that rise
from a spreading rhizome.[3] The leaves
are erect yellowish-brown, radical, with
pink sheathing at their bases, sword-
shaped, flat and narrow, tapering into a
long, acute point, and have parallel veins.
The leaves have smooth edges, which can
be wavy or crimped. The sweet flag can
easily be distinguished from iris and other
similar plants by the crimped edges of the
leaves, the fragrant odor it emits when
crushed, and the presence of a spadix.[4][5]

Only plants that grow in water bear

flowers. The solid, triangular flower-stems
rise from the axils of the outer leaves. A
semi-erect spadix emerges from one side
of the flower stem. The spadix is solid,
cylindrical, tapers at each end, and is 5 to
10 cm in length. A covering spathe, as is
usual with Acoraceae, is absent. The
spadix is densely crowded with tiny
greenish-yellow flowers. Each flower
contains six petals and stamens enclosed
in a perianth with six divisions,
surrounding a three-celled, oblong ovary
with a sessile stigma. The flowers are
sweetly fragrant.[4][5] In Europe, it flowers
for about a month in late spring or early
summer, but usually does not bear fruit.
The fruit is a berry filled with mucus, which
when ripe falls into the water and thus
disperses. Even in Asia, it fruits sparingly,
and propagates itself mainly by growth of
its rhizome, forming colonies.
The branched, cylindrical, knobby rhizome
is the thickness of a human finger and has
numerous coarse fibrous roots below it.
The exterior is brown and the interior
white.[6]

Range and habitat

Sweet flag grows in India, central Asia,
southern Russia and Siberia, and Europe.[6]
Habitats include edges of small lakes,
ponds and rivers, marshes, swamps, and
wetlands.[4]

Names and etymology

In addition to "sweet flag" and "calamus"
other common names include beewort,
bitter pepper root, calamus root, flag root,
gladdon, myrtle flag, myrtle grass, myrtle
root, myrtle sedge, pine root, rat root, sea
sedge, sweet cane, sweet cinnamon,
sweet grass, sweet myrtle, sweet root,
sweet rush, and sweet sedge.[2][3]

The generic name is the Latin word

acorus, which is derived from the Greek
άχόρου (áchórou) of Dioscorides (note
different versions of the text have different
spellings). The word άχόρου itself is
thought to have been derived from the
word κόρη (kóri), which means pupil (of an
eye), because of the juice from the root of
the plant being used as a remedy in
diseases of the eye ('darkening of the
pupil').[7][8][9]

The specific name calamus is derived

from Greek κάλαμος (kálamos, meaning
"reed"), cognate to Latin culmus ("stalk")
and Old English healm ("straw"), Arabic ‫َﻗﻠَﻢ‬
(qálam, "pen") and Sanskrit कलम (kalama,
"reed used as a pen", in turn from Proto-
Indo European *kole-mo- (thought to mean
"grass" or "reed").[10][11] The name "sweet
flag" refers to its sweet scent and its
similarity to Iris species, which are
commonly known as flags in English since
the late fourteenth century.[5][12]

History
The plant was already mentioned in the
Chester Beatty papyrus VI dating to
approximately 1300 BC. The ancient
Egyptians rarely mentioned the plant in
medicinal contexts, but it was certainly
used to make perfumes.[13]

Initially, Europeans confused the identity

and medicinal uses of the Acorus calamus
of the Romans and Greeks with their
native Iris pseudacorus. Thus the
Herbarius zu Teutsch, published at Mainz
in 1485, describes and includes a woodcut
of this iris under the name Acorus. This
German book is one of three possible
sources for the French Le Grant Herbier,
written in 1486, 1488, 1498 or 1508, of
which an English translation was
published as the Grete Herball by Peter
Treveris in 1526, all containing the false
identification of the Herbarius zu
Teutsch.[14] William Turner, writing in 1538,
describes 'acorum' as "gladon or a flag, a
yelowe floure delyce".[15]

The plant was introduced to Britain in the

late 16th century. By at least 1596, true
Acorus calamus was grown in Britain, as it
is listed in The Catalogue, a list of plants
John Gerard grew in his garden at Holborn.
Gerard notes "It prospereth exceeding well
in my garden, but as yet beareth neither
flowers nor stalke". Gerard lists the Latin
name as Acorus verus, but it is evident
there was still doubt about its veracity: in
his 1597 herbal he lists the English
common name as 'bastard calamus'.[16]
Carl O. Sauer reported the tuber to have
been used by North American Indians at
the time of European discovery.[17]

Botany
Illustration from an 1885 flora by Walther Otto Müller

Currently the taxonomic position of these

forms is contested. The comprehensive
taxonomic analysis in the Kew World
Checklist of Selected Plant Families from
2002 considers all three forms to be
distinct varieties of a single species.[18][19]
The Flora of North America publication
considers the diploid form to be a distinct
species, analyzing North American forms
of the diploid variety, and does not analyse
the morphology of Asian forms of the
diploid variety.[20] Also, in older literature,
the name Acorus americanus may be used
indiscriminately for all forms of Acorus
calamus occurring in North America,
irrespective of cytological diversity (i.e.
both the diploid and triploid forms).[20] The
treatment in the Flora of China from 2010,
which is followed in the Tropicos database
system, considers all varieties to be
synonyms of a single taxonomically
undifferentiated species, pointing to
morphological overlap in the
characteristics singled out by
Thompson.[21][22]

The primary morphological distinction

between the triploid and the North
American forms of the diploid is made by
the number of prominent leaf veins, the
diploid having a single prominent midvein
and on both sides of this equally raised
secondary veins, the triploid having a
single prominent midvein with the
secondary veins barely distinct.[20]
According to the Flora of China, there is
clear overlap in these characteristics and
the different cytotypes are impossible to
distinguish morphologically.[21] Triploid
plants are infertile and show an abortive
ovary with a shrivelled appearance. This
form will never form fruit (let alone seeds)
and can only spread asexually.[20]

The tetraploid variety is usually known as

Acorus calamus var. angustatus Besser. A
number of synonyms are known, but a
number are contested as to which variety
they belong. It is morphologically diverse,
with some forms having very broad and
some narrow leaves. It is furthermore also
cytotypically diverse, with an array of
different karyotypes.[18][23][24]

Chemistry
Calamus leaves and rhizomes contain a
volatile oil that gives a characteristic odor
and flavor.[3] Major components of the oil
are beta-asarone (as much as 75%) and
alpha-asarone, saponins, lectins,
sesquiterpenoids, lignans, and steroids.[3]
Phytochemicals in the plant vary
according to geographic location, plant
age, climate, species variety, and plant
component extracted.[3][25][26] Diploids do
not contain beta-asarone.[27]

Safety and regulations

A. calamus and products derived from A.
calamus (such as its oil) were banned
from use as human food or as a food
additive in 1968 by the United States Food
and Drug Administration.[3][28] Although
limits on consumption in food or alcoholic
beverages (115 micrograms per day) were
recommended in a 2001 ruling by the
European Commission, the degree of safe
exposure remained undefined.[29]

Toxicity

Although calamus has been used for its

fragrance and ingested, it has not been
studied by rigorous clinical research.[3]
Individual medical reports of toxicity
mention severe nausea and prolonged
vomiting over many hours following oral
uses.[3] Laboratory studies of its extracts
indicate other forms of toxicity.[3][29]

Uses
A. calamus has been an item of trade in
many cultures for centuries. It has been
used medicinally for a wide variety of
ailments, such as gastrointestinal
diseases and treating pain, and its aroma
makes calamus essential oil valued in the
perfume industry.[3] The essence from the
rhizome is used as a flavor for foods,
alcoholic beverages, and bitters in
Europe.[29] It was also once used to make
candy.[30]

In culture

In 19th century Britain, the plant was cut

for use as a sweet smelling floor covering
for the packed earth floors of dwellings
and churches, and stacks of rushes have
been used as the centrepiece of
rushbearing ceremonies over centuries.[31]

In herbal medicine

Sweet flag has a very long history of

medicinal use in Chinese and Indian herbal
traditions.[3][32] The leaves, stems, and
roots are used in various Siddha and
Ayurvedic medicines[33] and by the Sikkim
of Northeastern India.[34] Sweet flag is one
of the most widely and frequently used
herbal medicines among the Chipewyan
people.[35]

Horticulture

This plant is sometimes used as a pond

plant in horticulture.[4][36] There is at least
one ornamental cultivar known; it is
usually called 'Variegatus',[37] but the RHS
recommends calling it
'Argenteostriatus'.[38]
References
1. Lansdown, R.V. (2014). "Acorus
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Threatened Species. 2014:
e.T168639A43116307.
doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-
1.RLTS.T168639A43116307.en .
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2. Sylvan T. Runkel; Alvin F. Bull (2009)
[1979]. Wildflowers of Iowa
Woodlands . Iowa City, Iowa:
University of Iowa Press. p. 119.
ISBN 9781587298844. Retrieved
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3. "Calamus" . Drugs.com. 2018.
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4. John Hilty. "Sweet flag" . Wetland
Wildflowers of Illinois. Retrieved
28 January 2019.
5. "Acorus americanus – Sweet Flag" .
Rook.Org. 14 April 2004. Archived
from the original on 25 August 2006.
6. Grieve M (2018). "Sedge, Sweet; in A
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7. Pliny the Elder. "100" . Naturalis
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 8. Dioscorides, Pedanius (1829). "2".
Περὶ ὕλης ἰατρικῆς [De Materia
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9. "Nomina generica, quae Characterem
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11. Avadhani, Mythili; et al. (2013). "The
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14. Rohde, Eleanour Sinclair; The Old
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21. Heng, Li (李恒), Guanghua, Zhu (朱光
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24. Hong, Wang; Wenli, Li; Zhijian, Gu &
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"Vapor pressure and volatility of β-
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