Hello everyone!
I have two decent sized mature bat plants that I've had for a year now. Neither have bloomed yet though. However, the one them has been trying to push out a new leaf on multiple occasions, but once the leaf is emerged a few inches - it starts to die from the tip down. This has happened twice thus far.
What could I be doing wrong? I keep the plants watered well, and the other is looking great. The plants are grown indoors in front of a window, come may I plan to transition them outdoors for the summer.
Maybe I should give them a good dose of tomato fertilizer?
Thanks in advance!
Tacca (Bat Plants)
Definitely fertilize!
If they are root bound, transplant them to larger pots.
Dust the top of the pot with compost or manure.
Thanks for advice! I gave them both a good shot of tomato fertilizer and a real good soak.
I won't be able to get any compost or manure for a week or so ...
Thanks again! Hopefully this will be the trick and help them perk up.
You're very welcome!
If you give them plenty of root-space (a large pot) and ample nutrition, they will produce several flowers, and will make pups on the side of the plant, which you can remove and start more plants with.
Here are the two plants:
And the plant in question:
I'm wondering if humidity might be a factor here also...since they are being grown inside. Do you mist them ?
I honestly do not think humidity is an issue. The humidity in my bedroom never leaves from about 60% due to the seahorse aquarium. They went outside the other day and got a good hose down and are both showing new growth, yet the tips of it seem to brown immediately.
I have a feeling once they get outside for the summer they will spring back nicely. What minimum night temperature do you think they can stand? Our nights are currently in the mid 40's to low 50's. I think it is still a bit too early.
The tacca above have completely defoliated. I have them placed outside with the hopes of showing some sort of life again .
Though I did manage to catch a deal on this multigrowth black bat plant. It had one bloom which has since died, but has between 5-7 buds deep within the foliage. I have this guy under it's own light and everything. Let's hope I can get it to thrive!
I'm wondering about the tomato fertilizer ?? I know it's used on Brugs, but I wonder if it might be a bit much for the Tacca's.
I have two small ones...one black and one white, and I've been using fish emulsion on them and they are responding wonderfully.
Will be cool to see yours bloom !
I'm wondering if it might have been the tomato fertilizer as well. My two white and the two black I had have all browned. All fertilized, I believe they are done.
Where can I find fish emulsion? I'd like to give it a try on this one.
Franco,
I get mine at the Ace Hardware here. I use "Alaska", they have a regular and bloom formula. I'm sure there must be someplace up there that carries it.
http://www.planetnatural.com/site/alaska-fish-fertilizer.html
Ace Hardware is right down the street from me. I'll have to take a look! Thanks.
Your welcome !
I took a trip to Ace Hardware today and picked up the Alaska Fish Fertilizer all purpose deodorized fish emulsion. 5-1-1.
Now though, my tacca is fairly new. I've had it for 10 days thus far. When do you recommend I give it it's first shot of fertilizer? I was thinking next week sometime when I decide to water, but this seems too early to me to be fertilizing after it was re-potted.
Do you follow the bottle's directions of 2 teaspoons per quart of water every 3 weeks during the growing season? I never really noticed a difference on my other plants when I used the tomato fert, so I'm eager to give this a try.
Franco go half strength and use every other time or so that you water till you see how it's doing. Also remember to do fertilize with the fish emulsion with good ventilation....it's a bit.....ummm...."fishy" smelling....
MJ, I agree, even the deodorized fish fert is pretty stinky! I had to give up using it, because it attracted every raccoon within a 5 mile radius. Cats too. My kitty is the queen of her little fenced domain, and she (and I) was going nuts defending it with yowling cat fights all night long until the smell wore off.
Probably ok to use on outdoor potted plants in NJ where there's not quite so much wildlife. It is excellent fertilizer.
I'm going to get a tacca and see how it goes. Home Depot has the black ones for a decent price, occasionally. They are really cool looking.
Thanks for the info guys! Though do you think it is too early to give it a watering with the fish emulsion? It came bare root and was immediately repotted 12 days or so ago.
Yeah, but I'd use it at half strength as MJ suggests - i.e. dilute it with twice as much water as usual.
The nitrogen component in fish fert is slow release so it's not going to burn the plant, and you should see a nice little surge of new growth.
Some people adopt the practice of fertilising "weakly weekly" rather than stronger doses at longer intervals.
Especially as Tropic says..with newly repotted plants. I am conservative till I see new growth, then I'll up it to maybe 3/4 strength. When your not sure, it's always best to add slowly. Tacca's grow FAST once they get going. I have all 3 , white - black- and just potted up tubers for the green. I got the white and black as liners, put them in 4 in pots, and in two weeks they were ready for 6 in. pots.
They get the "stinky stuff" 1/2 strength every other watering. I also keep them in a tray that is sitting in another tray that I keep water in. So they are not sitting in water, but they have very high humidity.
This picture is from a couple of weeks ago.
I am doing the same mjsponies! I have the tacca in a pot on a tray that is on another tray full of water to increase humidity. I do see some new leaves just starting, though I'm not sure if they are truly new or if they were there and just went unnoticed. I think I will give it a water with the "stinky stuff" in a few days.
Time for an update!
The big Black Bat got a little sunburned in the transition to outdoors, though it is putting out new growth. Next to it is another small Black Bat plant and in the far right is a White Bat (integrifolia). They are all doing well and putting out growth and making buds.
Full morning sun then dappled shade, high humidity, and fish emulsion fert seems to do the trick.
You are doing a great job with them. I have finally found some seeds for the black one and green one. I haven't found any for the white one yet. I know they will probably take awhile to germinate so maybe I should save them for winter.
Connie
Aspen,
Do you have seeds or corms. I grew my green one from corms. Carefull not to keep them too moist. Anyhow the corms popped up in about two weeks, and the plants are about 6-8 in. tall now.
I hope I didn't buy the wrong thing. The package says seeds. They came in a little sealed packet and....well....I am at a loss for words. The only thing I can think of is....okay..... they look like mouse poo lol!!!! I am too used to messing with Gesneriad seeds which is so small you can't see what shape they are lol.
Connie
These guys are a real pain in the behind to grow from seeds. I've tried many times, and no luck. They can take 9+ months, yes MONTHS, to germinate. You are better off spending the money for established plants, or even seedlings, in my opinion. These guys are real tricky plants. They are not afraid to look like crap and pout if conditions are not perfect.
Yeah, it will be a good while before I see any sign of life. I have been wanting these for over two years now and decided maybe I could do something with seeds. We just don't have any type of tropical plants at all here. Please keep your fingers crossed for me. If I can get one to germinate I would be on cloud nine lol. I want to try to get these to germinate and if I do have any luck then I will look for seeds for the white one to have one of each. Wonder how long it takes for a seeding to grow and bloom if successful? Franco, yours are doing great so maybe it won't be much longer for your buds to open.
Connie
Once the plants get going, they grow like weeds. The two small pots are seedlings of both black and white tacca. They had doubled in size in the month that I've had them. You can pick up 2-4" potted seedlings for less than 10$ each.
I've killed over 10 seedlings and two adult bat plants before I got these to finally thrive. They are truly a gamble. The key to success is finding something that works for them and sticking to it.
Aspen,
Ok..well no I had corms...or little bulblets. I'm too impatient to wait 9 months for seeds to germinate.
My Chantrieri is blooming constantly .. I have it outside and it gets about 2 hours of direct sun a day .. I feed it with Miracle Grow about every two weeks. It's a real happy camper! Just waiting for it to pup because I'd really like to trade for a white one.
In winter it stays in the greenhouse and sorta goes comatose .. tolerates temps into the upper 30's with no problems and does not lose it's leaves. I've had it going on 3 years now.
As to the seeds, if you plant them within a week or so of harvest they come right up otherwise they go into persistent dormancy and produces a germination inhibitor which is very hard to break.
Well, that doesn't sound very promising for me lol!! I bought the seeds from a nursery when visiting our daughter. You just can't find things like that here. I gave it a shot anyway...sniff, sniff...lol
Connie
Some people have had good success with constantly bathing the seeds in running water for a few weeks which helps to leech out the germination inhibitors.
Over the years I've purchased both white and black bat plants. The whites last for a month or two then go into a decline. The black last for a couple of years, then start a decline resulting in death. I've tried different fungicides, used fish fert. placed in dappled sun, no sun, some sun, but have finally given up. I've also read everything I can find on growing them but this is one of only a few plants I've failed on. :o(
Saw this gorgeous Chantrieri at a local nursery yesterday. Boy, was I tempted to buy it. It's 3ft. high and wide, and has leaves 18in. long. Never seen one nearly this size before.
Sanity reigned and I left it for another day. Winter's coming on, and I'd probably be messing with hauling it in and out of the house on cold nights. Maybe in spring I'll give it a try.
But SO pretty - it has the 'black' flowers but white whiskers. Is this unusual?
Elaine
I've never seen pics of black with white whiskers before. Maybe there will be another one for you next spring. I planted my tacca seeds in July and have not even gotten a sprout. So sad.
Connie
I grow the Bat Plants here. Some in pots some in the ground. They will get knocked back from a frost or freeze, but come back up usually around end of May first part of June. The one's in pots I take in the greenhouse and put in a very bright spot. Mature plants will start blooming around June, both mine in the ground and in pots are on their second go round.
Here's a pic of mine in the ground I think it was middle of summer or so.
Very nice!!! Did you start yours from seeds? I don't know if it would do any good to contact the Co. that I bought the seeds from and it might just take longer than 4 months for any of them to sprout lol!! I have pretty much given up on them though :(((
Connie
I didn't start these from seed, but did get them as small plants. My understanding that Tacca seed has a very short shelf life. I think you'd be better off to get an established plant.
Yes, it's true Tacca seed has a short viability. Unfortunately when you buy some you never really know how old they are.