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- Acorus calamus
Acorus calamus — single-veined sweetflag
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Facts
Because single-veined sweetflag has three sets of chromosomes, it is sterile and cannot produce fruit. European settlers brought it to North America and grew it for medicinal purposes. It propagates readily through spread of the rhizomes, and has spread throughout the eastern and midwestern United States, with scattered instances elsewhere. The rhizome has medicinal properties and has been used to treat a variety of conditions from nausea, heartburn, and colds to fatigue and anxiety.
Habitat
Lacustrine (in lakes or ponds), marshes, riverine (in rivers or streams), shores of rivers or lakes, wetland margins (edges of wetlands)
New England distribution
Adapted from BONAP data
Native: indigenous.
Non-native: introduced (intentionally or unintentionally); has become naturalized.
County documented: documented to exist in the county by evidence (herbarium specimen, photograph). Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
State documented: documented to exist in the state, but not documented to a county within the state. Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
Note: when native and non-native populations both exist in a county, only native status is shown on the map.
Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.
Characteristics
- Habitat
-
- aquatic
- wetlands
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Leaf arrangement
- basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
- Leaf blade shape
- the leaf blade is linear (very narrow with more or less parallel sides)
- Leaf blade length
- 299–1750 mm
- Flower petal color
-
- green to brown
- yellow
- Flower petal length
- 3–4 mm
- Petal fusion
- the perianth parts are separate
- Inflorescence type
- the inflorescence is a spike (a long unbranched stem with flowers along it that lack stalks)
- Ovary position
- the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
- Fruit type (specific)
-
- NA
- the fruit is a berry (fleshy, with the wall enclosing one or more sections, with two or more seeds)
- Fruit length
- 0 mm
-
Clonal plantlets
- Axillary bulblets
- there are no bulblets being produced in axils
-
Flowers
- Anther attachment
- the anther is attached by its base to the filament
- Anther color
- the anthers show no hint of a pink, reddish or purplish tint
- Bulblets replace flowers
- there are no bulblets where the flowers are located
- Carpels fused
- the carpels are fused (the number of carpels equals the number of locules)
- Filament surface
- the filament surface has no hairs or scales on it
- Flower bract length
- 15–90 mm
- Flower bracts
- there are bracts associated with the flower
- Flower orientation
- the flowers point upward or spread or curve outward
- Flower petal color
-
- green to brown
- yellow
- Flower petal length
- 3–4 mm
- Flower shape
- the flower has a tube-shaped corolla
- Flower symmetry
- there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
- Form of style
- the style is knob-like at the tip, and unbranched
- Fringed petal edges
- the petals are not fringed
- Hairs on flower stalk
- NA
- Inflorescence hair glands
- the axis of the inflorescence has no hairs on it
- Inflorescence length
- 38–89 mm
- Inflorescence type
- the inflorescence is a spike (a long unbranched stem with flowers along it that lack stalks)
- Inflorescence width
- 5.3–10.8 mm
- Length of flower stalk
- 0 mm
- Length of peduncle
- 150–500 mm
- Marks on petals
- there are no noticeable marks on the petals
- Nectar spur
- the flower has no nectar spurs
- Number of carpels
- 2–3
- Number of pistils
- 1
- Number of sepals and/or petals
- there are six petals, sepals or tepals in the flower
- Number of styles
- 0–1
- Ovary position
- the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
- Petal and sepal arrangement
- the flower includes only one cycle of petals or sepals
- Petal appearance
- the petals are green and/or leafy in texture
- Petal base
- the petal narrows gradually or does not narrow at the base
- Petal fusion
- the perianth parts are separate
- Petal hairs on inner/upper surface
- there are no hairs on the inner/upper petal surface
- Petal nectaries
- the petals do not have nectaries
- Sepal appearance
- the sepals resemble leaves in color and texture
- Sepal length
- 3–4 mm
- Sepal orientation
- the sepals are pressed against the plant, or jutting stiffly upward
- Sepals fused only to sepals
- the sepals are separate from one another
- Spathe
- the plant does not have a spathe
- Spathe form
- NA
- Spathe length
- 0 mm
- Stamen length
- 1.7–2.9 mm
- Stamen number
- 6
- Stamen position relative to petals
- NA
- Stamen types
- the stamens within a cycle are all similar
- Stamens fused
- the stamens are not fused to one another
- Stamens fused outwards
- the stamens are not fused to the petals or tepals
- Style length
- At least 0 mm
- Style petal-like
- the style is not broad and flattened like a petal
- Tepals
- the petals and sepals are similar in size and color
-
Fruits or seeds
- Berry color
-
- NA
- brown
- green
- Capsule ridges
- NA
- Fruit beak length
- 0 mm
- Fruit cross-section
- the fruit is round in cross-section
- Fruit length
- 0 mm
- Fruit stalk orientation
- NA
- Fruit type (general)
-
- NA
- the fruit is fleshy
- Fruit type (specific)
-
- NA
- the fruit is a berry (fleshy, with the wall enclosing one or more sections, with two or more seeds)
- Fruit width
- 0 mm
- Other markings on berry
-
- NA
- the ripe fruits are mostly one color without spots or streaks
- the ripe fruits have spots or streaks on them
-
Glands or sap
- Sap
- the sap is clear and watery
-
Growth form
- Lifespan
- the plant lives more than two years
- Root septa
- the roots do not have transverse septa
- Underground organs
-
- the plant has a rhizome (a horizontal underground stem with roots growing from it)
- there are only slender roots on the plant
-
Leaves
- Hairs on underside of leaf blade
- the underside of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
- Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
- NA
- Leaf arrangement
- basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
- Leaf blade basal lobes
- the leaf blades do not have basal lobes
- Leaf blade base
- the leaf has no stalk
- Leaf blade base shape
- NA
- Leaf blade bloom
- the underside of the leaf blade has no noticeable waxy or powdery bloom
- Leaf blade cross-section
- the leaf blade is more or less flat in cross-section
- Leaf blade faces
- the surfaces of the leaf blade are composed of tissues from the abaxial side only
- Leaf blade form
- Fully-formed (i.e., expanded), +/- green leaf blades are found somewhere on the plant
- Leaf blade length
- 299–1750 mm
- Leaf blade orientation
- the edge of the leaf blade faces the stem of the plant
- Leaf blade shape
- the leaf blade is linear (very narrow with more or less parallel sides)
- Leaf blade surface colors
-
- NA
- the upper side of the leaf blade is relatively uniform in color
- Leaf blade tip
- the tip of the leaf blade is acuminate (tapers to a long, thin point)
- Leaf blade veins
- the lateral veins are parallel or slightly arched in the direction of the tip
- Leaf blade width
- 5–20 mm
- Leaf stalk length
- 0 mm
- Leaf type
- the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
- Leaflet number
- 0
- Stipule twining
- NA
- Stipules
- there are no stipules on this plant
-
Place
- Habitat
-
- aquatic
- wetlands
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Specific habitat
-
- edges of wetlands
- in lakes or ponds
- in rivers or streams
- marshes
- shores of rivers or lakes
-
Scent
- Plant odor
- the leaves smell of lemon, citrus or other fruit
-
Stem, shoot, branch
- Flowering stem growth form
-
- the flowering stem is held upright
- the flowering stem trails along the ground or on other vegetation, or floats in the water
- Flowering stem leaves
- there are no true leaves on the flowering stem
- Stem hairs
- the stem is nearly or completely hairless
Wetland status
Occurs only in wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: OBL)
In New England
Distribution
- Connecticut
- present
- Maine
- present
- Massachusetts
- present
- New Hampshire
- present
- Rhode Island
- present
- Vermont
- present
Conservation status
Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.
- Massachusetts
- not applicable (S-rank: SNA)
From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key
2. Acorus calamus L. E
single-veined sweetflag. CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Marshes, lake borders, stream shores, and other open, wet areas.
Native to North America?
No
Sometimes confused with
- Acorus americanus:
- vegetative leaf blades mostly narrower than 10 mm, with 2-6 primary veins that are significantly broader than the fine, secondary veins (vs. A. calamus, with vegetative leaf blades mostly wider than 10 mm, with one primary vein that is significantly broader than the fine, secondary veins).