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Acorus calamus - (image 1 of 3)

Taxonomy

Family: Acoraceae

Habitat

Shallow waters of stable marshes and swamps. Also on moist, open, calcareous sites.

Associates

Often with Typha latifolia.

Distribution

Most of the US east of the Rockies. Also in some western states.

Morphology

Leaves all basal, crowded at the base, glossy yellow-green; iris-like. Flowers tiny, yellow-brown, in a greenish spadix borne on a leaf-like scape.

Notes

Flowers mid May to July

Wetland Indicator: Obligate

The rhizomes of this pleasantly aromatic plant can reportedly be made into candy. The roots are peeled, cut into short lengths, and boiled in several changes of water for about an hour or until tender; then simmered in a rich sugar syrup for 20 minutes and set aside to dry. According to Swink and Wilhelm (1994), there are native and introduced elements of this species. The ones pictured here are likely the Old World element, which have a single strong vein running the length of the leaves. The native element is said to have two or more raised veins.

References

Peterson, L. A. 1977. A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: Eastern and central North America.

Houghton Mifflin Company. New York, NY

Swink, F. and G. Wilhelm. 1994. Plants of the Chicago Region.
Indiana Academy of Science. The Morton Arboretum. Lisle, Illinois.

USDA, NRCS. 2002. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov).
National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA

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