Acorus - Characteristics

See text Acorus is a genus of monocot flowering plants. This genus was once placed within the family Araceae (aroids), but more recent phylogenies place it in its own family Acoraceae and order Acorales, of which it is the sole genus. Common names include Calamus and Sweet Flag. The name 'acorus' is derived from the Greek word 'acoron', a name used by Dioscorides, which in turn was derived from 'coreon', meaning 'pupil', because it was used in herbal medicin ...

Including:

• Acorus - Characteristics
• Acorus - Species
• Acorus - Chemistry
• Acorus - Regulations
• Acorus - Usage
• Acorus - Cultural symbolism
• Acorus - Etymology of the word Calamus

Read more here: » Acorus: Encyclopedia - Acorus

These grasslike evergreen plants are hemicryptophytes, (i.e. perennial plants of which the overwintering buds are at the soil surface) or geophytes (i.e. the overwintering buds are found underground, usually attached to a bulb, corm, tuber, etc.). Their natural habitat is at the waterside or close to marshes, often found with reedbeds. The inconspicuous flowers are arranged on a lateral spadix (a thickened, fleshy axis). Unlike aroids, there is no spathe (large bract, enclosing the spadix). The spadix is 4-10 cm long and is enclosed by the foliage. The bract can be ten times longer than the spadix. ...

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Acorus, Acorus - Characteristics, Acorus - Species, Acorus - Chemistry, Acorus - Regulations, Acorus - Usage, Acorus - Cultural symbolism, Acorus - Etymology of the word Calamus

Read more here: » Acorus: Encyclopedia II - Acorus - Characteristics

The calamus has long been a symbol of male love. The name is associated with a Greek myth: Kalamos, a son of the river-god Maeander, who loved Karpos, the son of Zephyrus and Chloris. When Karpos drowned, Kalamos was transformed into a reed, whose rustling in the wind was interpreted as a sigh of lamentation. The plant was a favorite of Henry David Thoreau (who called it sweet flag), and also of Walt Whitman, who added a section called The Calamus Poems, celebrating the love of men, to the third edition of Leaves of GrassSee also:

Acorus, Acorus - Characteristics, Acorus - Species, Acorus - Chemistry, Acorus - Regulations, Acorus - Usage, Acorus - Cultural symbolism, Acorus - Etymology of the word Calamus

Read more here: » Acorus: Encyclopedia II - Acorus - Cultural symbolism

Calamus has been an item of trade in many cultures for thousands of years. Calamus has been used medicinally for a wide variety of ailments. In antiquity in the Orient and Egypt, the rhizome was thought to be a powerful aphrodisiac. In Europe Acorus calamus was often added to wine, and the root is also one of the possible ingredients of absinthe. Among the northern Native Americans, it is used both medicinally and as a stimulant; in addition, the root is thought to have been used as an entheogen among the northern Native Americans. In high doses, it is hallucinogenic; Calamus has been used ...

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Acorus, Acorus - Characteristics, Acorus - Species, Acorus - Chemistry, Acorus - Regulations, Acorus - Usage, Acorus - Cultural symbolism, Acorus - Etymology of the word Calamus

Read more here: » Acorus: Encyclopedia II - Acorus - Usage

In older literature and on many websites, there is still much confusion, with the name Acorus calamus equally but wrongfully applied to Acorus americanus. The genus includes : Acorus americanus (Raf.) Raf. (formerly known as A. calamus var. americanus) - American Sweet Flag; fertile diploid (2n = 24); occurring in Alaska, Canada and northern USA. Diploid plants in Siberia and temperate Asia may also belong here, but have not been fully investigated ([1]). Recently reco ...

See also:

Acorus, Acorus - Characteristics, Acorus - Species, Acorus - Chemistry, Acorus - Regulations, Acorus - Usage, Acorus - Cultural symbolism, Acorus - Etymology of the word Calamus

Read more here: » Acorus: Encyclopedia II - Acorus - Species