Description:

Acorus calamus, commonly known as Sweet Flag[1] or Calamus, [1]and erroneously as "rush" or "sedges", is a tall perennial wetlandmonocot of the Acoraceae family, in the genus Acorus.[2] Othernames include beewort, [1] bitter pepper root, [1] calamus root,[1] flag root, [1] gladdon, myrtle flag, myrtle grass, [1] myrtleroot, [1] myrtle sedge, [1] pine root, [1] sea sedge, [1] sweetcane, sweet case, [1] sweet cinnamon, [1] sweet grass, [1] sweetmyrtle, [1] sweet root, sweet rush, [1] and sweet sedge.[1] Thescented leaves and more strongly scented rhizomes havetraditionally been used medicinally and to make fragrances, and thedried and powdered rhizome has been used as a substitute forginger, cinnamon and nutmeg.[2][3]
Latin Name  English Names  Sanskrit Names  HindiName
Acorus calamus
Linn. (Araceae)
 Sweet Flag, Calamus, Sweet Root  Vacha, Sadgrantha,Ugragandha, Vayambur  Bach
 

Probably indigenous to India or Arabia, Acorus calamus is now foundacross Europe, southern Russia, northern Asia Minor, southernSiberia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Burma, Sri Lanka, Australia, aswell as southern Canada and the northern United States, [2][3]where it may be confused with diploid Acorus americanus.
Sweet flag has a very long history of medicinal use in Chinese andIndian herbal traditions.[21] It is widely employed in modernherbal medicine as its sedative, laxative, diuretic, andcarminative properties.[3] It is used in Ayurveda to counter theside effects of all hallucinogens.[22] Sweet Flag is one of themost widely and frequently used herbal medicines amongst theChipewyan people.[23]

Both roots and leaves of A. calamus have shown antioxidant, [24]antimicrobial and insecticidal activities.[25]

Acorus calamus may prove to be an effective control measure againstcattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus.