Japanese Sweet Flag (Dwarf Sweet Flag, Grassy-Leaved Sweet Flag)
Acorus gramineus. ARACEAE.
Planting and Growing Japanese Sweet Flag
You’ll find everything you need to know to plant and grow Japanese sweet flag in the accompanying table’s tabs:
-
- Flowers, foliage, and root structure of Japanese sweet flag
- Plant hardiness and growing conditions for Japanese sweet flag
- Season of bloom and planting time for Japanese sweet flag
- When, how deep, and where to plant Japanese sweet flag
- How to plant Japanese sweet flag
- Watering, fertilizing, care and pests or diseases of Japanese sweet flag
- Landscape and container uses of Japanese sweet flag
- Comments about Japanese sweet flag and its features
Growing Japanese Sweet Flag
Many cultivars of mounding, rhizomatous, semi-evergreen perennial herbs, to 18 in. (45 cm) tall and wide. Shiny, gold, green, variegated, narrow, straplike, grasslike, fragrant leaves, to 1 ft. (30 cm) long and 1/2–in. (12–mm) wide, in low-growing, fan-shaped, grasslike tufts.
Acorus gramineus ‘Oboruzuki’ and ‘Ogon’ are golden-leaved varieties; ‘Variegatus’, with green leaves striped with white edges, grows more slowly.
See also Sweet flag, Acorus calamus, a closely related species with similar care needs.
Planting and Care Guide
Blooms
Insignificant flowers; grown primarily for foliage.
Best Climates
Semi-hardy. Zones 6–10.
Soil Type and Fertility
Evenly moist humus or, in water features, shallow-depth marginal or shoreline sites. Fertility: Rich. 6.0–8.0 pH.
Where and How to Plant
Spring in full to filtered sun, 1 ft. (30 cm) apart, or submerged to 10 in. (25 cm).
Proper Care
Easy. Keep evenly moist. Fertilize annually in spring. Divide when crowded. Propagate by division, seed.
About This Plant
Good choice for accents, borders, ground covers in boggy soil, shade gardens, or water features. Pest and disease resistant.