Sweetflag (Acorus calamus)

Scientific Name: Acorus calamus

Other Names: SweetFlag

Family: Acoraceae

Part used: Root/Rhizome

Sweet Flag is an aromatic wetland plant belonging to the Acoraceae family. It thrives along the margins of ponds, lakes and slow-moving rivers, where its distinctive sword-shaped leaves emerge from creeping underground rhizomes. Although superficially similar to irises, Sweet Flag is more closely related to one of the oldest surviving lineages of flowering plants. The fragrant rhizome has been valued for centuries and possesses a warm, spicy aroma with notes reminiscent of cinnamon, ginger and citrus.

The use of Acorus calamus can be traced back thousands of years and spans many cultures, including the herbal traditions of Europe, India and East Asia. Historically it has been appreciated as an aromatic botanical, incorporated into traditional herbal preparations, perfumes and incense, while the dried rhizome was sometimes carried for its distinctive fragrance. Sweet Flag continues to be of interest to botanists, herbal historians and ethnobotanical enthusiasts as a plant with a rich cultural heritage and a long association with traditional plant knowledge.