Commonly called grassy-leaved sweet flag, it is native to wetland areas of China, Japan, Korea, India, Thailand, Myanmar and the Philippines. It is a semi-evergreen, marginal aquatic perennial that features a grass-like tuft of narrow, linear leaf blades (1/4“ wide) that fan outward to 6-12” tall. Tiny, yellow-green flowers bloom from spring to early summer on lateral, sedge-like flower spikes (spadixes to 2-4″ long). Flowers give way to very tiny, reddish, fleshy berries. Tufts will slowly spread over time by rhizomes to form a dense ground cover. Plants thrive in wet soils and are commonly grown in water gardens and boggy areas for foliage accent or ground cover purposes. Acorus appreciates some relief from hot summer sun (e.g., afternoon shade or filtered sun). Although it looks like a grass and its common name suggests a grassy appearance, grassy-leaved sweet flag is not a member of the grass family. Originally it was assigned to the arum family (which includes calla lily and jack-in-the-pulpit), but recently it has been transferred from arum to its own family called Acoraceae. Foliage is sweetly fragrant when bruised (hence the common name of sweet flag). Hardy to Zones 5-9. Photos courtesy of Missouri Botanical Garden.
Acorus gramineus ‘Ogon’ (Grassy-leaved sweet flag)
Description
Commonly called grassy-leaved sweet flag, it is native to wetland areas of China, Japan, Korea, India, Thailand, Myanmar and the Philippines. It is a semi-evergreen, marginal aquatic perennial that features a grass-like tuft of narrow, linear leaf blades (1/4“ wide) that fan outward to 6-12” tall. Tiny, yellow-green flowers bloom from spring to early summer on lateral, sedge-like flower spikes (spadixes to 2-4″ long). Flowers give way to very tiny, reddish, fleshy berries. Tufts will slowly spread over time by rhizomes to form a dense ground cover. Plants thrive in wet soils and are commonly grown in water gardens and boggy areas for foliage accent or ground cover purposes. Acorus appreciates some relief from hot summer sun (e.g., afternoon shade or filtered sun). Although it looks like a grass and its common name suggests a grassy appearance, grassy-leaved sweet flag is not a member of the grass family. Originally it was assigned to the arum family (which includes calla lily and jack-in-the-pulpit), but recently it has been transferred from arum to its own family called Acoraceae. Foliage is sweetly fragrant when bruised (hence the common name of sweet flag). Hardy to Zones 5-9. Photos courtesy of Missouri Botanical Garden.
