Bat plants - What's the REAL story?

It seems that so much that I read about taccas is negative. Very few posts on this board and others in the past have been encouraging. I have researched them quite a bit the for the past week. These plants fascinate me. I love the chantrieris (black bats) and have such an itch to try one, yet my conditions are all wrong. I have an average of 15-20% humidity. I do use pebble trays, but I read also that bats can rot very easily if misted. They also love good air circulation, but that tends to dry out plants even more. A high percentage of people in old posts say that their taccas slowly declined and ending up dying no matter what they did. Why is it we so often want something that we have a very low chance of being successful with? A lot of these plants that died, admittedly, were seedlings. And I have read that the older plants tend to do better. A few people in these threads have stated they are no harder to grow than orchids. I have pretty good luck with orchids, so I'm wondering. . . .

How many of you here have bats, and what has been your experience with them? Anyone grow them where the humidity is low? Did you start out with a seedling or an older plant? Did you find the older ones were easier to keep alive? How about people in S. Calif? By the way, mine would be keep as a houseplant.

Randi

I've always been fascinated with these, too, but it's that degree of difficulty that has kept me from trying them.
I usually figure I can 'create' a microclimate for a particular plant, but I didn't bother to try with this one, mainly, though because of the price, as it was a few years back when I was considering one. I know the prices have come way down and they've become much more widely available since then.

Unless you can find a well-established potted one that hasn't had it's roots disturbed, I, personally, would try a seedling first. When growing indoors, it seems that sensitive plants like these have a much better chance at acclimating to indoor growth if began from a seed.

Did you purchase your seedlings *as* seedlings, or did you start the seeds yourself?

What kind of problems did your seedlings have that caused their demise?

I don't always have great luck with seeds, either....seems that my biggest problem is 'damping off'.

Last year, though, I bought some seeds for a hoya relative (and do you think I can remember the name now, LOL!! NO!!) and the instructions stated to spray the soil with a copper fungicide after planting the seeds.
I just happened to have some on hand, so I did just that and I had almost 100 percent success with those seeds!

I've read that a lot of people are finding these at WM, HD, etc....have you seen them near your or were you considering ordering one?

Good luck with your dilemma! (Ü)

Hi Nan, I haven't had a tacca before - this will be my first try. A very nice woman whom I bought some Morning Glories from on ebay has a black bat that she is growing from seed. She says its not ready yet, but will let me know when it is. I just happened to ask her if she had any, and it happens she has one, so I got lucky. I trust her to send me a healthy, well established seedling, as the morning glories she sent are wonderful. So I guess if I'm going to go ahead and take the plunge, the best place to get one is from her! I'll keep everyone updated. Thank you, and I DO have my microclimate all ready! So I'm going in fully armed, and ready to make my best shot! Just think - a bat for Halloween!

Randi

WOW! I'd never even heard of these plants, and thanks to this thread I looked them up and saw how crazy they are! (And I mean that in a good way, I think... they're a little scary! LOL!) I used to be a "goth girl" when I was a silly teenager, and those flowers would go perfectly in my imaginary spooky Adam's Family mansion. :-D They look like a prop on Star Trek or something - hardly real! Good luck growing yours. :)

I bought a black one at Wal-Mart this year in bloom. A couple of months later it threw up another bloom stalk. So far, so good. Now will I be able to winter it over?

See, Randi?! He bought it at WalMart!! LOL!
I'm just amazed that WM's are carrying these (well, not around here, though!)

I'm just curious, hcmc....do you know who the vendor was that WM purchased these from......any tag or sticker? Was it reasonably priced?

I think you're better off starting with a seedling since you'll be growing it indoors though Randi....I'm guessing you'll get a good price on it too?

I don't know the grower (I will check later if there is still a tag). It was around $16 for a very large pot. Here it is after I bought it in late May.

$16 for a very large pot is incredible - I'm finding TINY ones on ebay for anywhere from $9.99 to 19.99. The one for $9.99 is ony 2-4" tall! Hcmc, your plant looks so fantastically healthy! Any culture secrets on how you keep it that way? And I've never, ever seen a bat for sale in MY Walmart, or HD or Lowe's either.

Randi

Oh, and for those who don't know - there is also a white bat plant. Very attractive, but I prefer the black. The whites supposedly are larger growers and a little more difficult to grow.

Randi

You should 'nudge' the seller a little bit and tell that you know people who have purchased large pots of them at WM for that price!

I agree....bat plant blooms....gotta be black!
(In reality...black bats are bad enough...albino bats......)

I think there is a 3rd one too - brown.

Here was my second bloom stalk emerging earlier this summer. Looks almost evil - like an alien predator.

Wow, I sure wouldn't want to run across THAT in a dark alley! But at the same time, its got an unearthly beauty. I love anything that is unique and out of the ordinary. Too bad so many "different" looking plants have a reputation for being hard to grow. Love those whiskers! A face only a mommy bat could love, LOL!

Randi

hcmc....I have a feeling you're making Randi very envious....me, too, now that I've mentioned it;)

Hope you don't mind me asking (and you too, Randi).....

Did you have any problems acclimating your plant?
Are you nervous about overwintering it or do you feel it'll do well?

I'm interested in your views on the pros/cons of growing it, to date.

Randi....I think you and hcmcdole have 'rekindled' my interest in this durned plant! (Ü)

hcmcdole...I just happened to take a closer look at your photo of the plant from when you brought it home.....do you think, if it weren't in bloom or tagged, that you'd have recognized this as a Tacca?
I'm thinking it sort of resembles (without the bloom) a Spathiphyllum, and wonder if maybe they're 'out there' on the market and we just don't know it?
Or does it have some differences that aren't obvious in the photo.
What's the approximate size of your plant's leaves in that photo?
TIA....sorry for all the ??'s.....it's Randi's fault;)

This message was edited Sep 14, 2007 12:42 PM

I had no problems acclimating this plant but then we get pretty steamy in the summer. I keep it under shade but when it wilts I water thoroughly (sometimes dunk the whole pot in a tub of water).

Time will tell how well this will do when I move it indoors for winter. Maybe I will move it into the house instead of the basement where 99% of my houseplants go.

I would not have recognized it as a bat plant if it weren't for the blooms. I saw some in Thailand last year but I only noticed the blooms, not the foliage (if it had not been in bloom, then it would've just been another green plant to me). See photo.

The foliage is a lot like a peace lily but they are a little stiffer. The leaves are over a foot long and are glossier than spaths.

Here is another exceptional plant I found at Wal-Mart. Variegated tapioca plant (manihot).

Our Wal-Mart had the Black Bat Plants last year and I bought one to try .... it didn't live long at all! I don't know what I did wrong. They had that variegated Tapioca plant too and I can't believe I didn't buy one! They are Beautiful! When I finally decided to take the plunge, they were all gone! I'm hoping next spring they will get more in!

I'll take full responsibility for this thread! We plant-aholics tend to get one plant on our minds, and its impossible to dislodge it until we own one! I'm glad I'm not the only one around here that is currently obsessed with taccas! When you started actually dreaming at night about the plant, you know the situation has to be remedied! Nan, you must have read my mind! I was thinking the VERY same thing yesterday --- I wonder if I've seen bat plants for sale before, but just didn't know what they were! Its very possible, and if one doesn't look closely, I bet it would be very easy to pass one over, thinking its a peace lily. Stiffer leaves, and glossier foliage. I'll have to remember that. . .

That variegated tapioca plant is a beauty! And Plantladylin, you should know better by now to never, ever not buy a plant you are unsure about. If you walk out of that store, you'll be sorry. That plant will haunt you endlessly until you go back to the store to get it. And then, of course, its always gone. How many times have I kicked myself for not buying a plant? If in the slightest doubt, remember the default, BUY THE PLANT! If you don't you'll always remember "the one that got away."

I got a picture of an older spath next to my bat plant today. Then my dog walked into the picture. Anyway you can see how much bigger the leaves are on the bat plant.

Well, Randi...I wasn't obsessed until you posted this thread, LOL!!!! (Ü)
That's the way it works, though, isn't it?!

Randi's right, Lin....those nagging "I shoulda bought that plant" regrets will always haunt you!!

I'm glad you posted that photo, hcmc....now I'll know what to look for.
The leaves have quite a 'shirred' effect too, I notice.

I have seem some 'large leaved cultivar' peace lilies with leaves that could have passed for those...some leaves were even slightly 'mutated'....in fact, I bought one...but it's definitely a 'Peace Lily' since it did send up the familiar bloom.

Good to have a photo to show the differences, though...thanks for posting it hcmcdole!

In retrospect, I think I "may" have seen a tacca or two before, and didn't think much of it (since it wasn't in bloom) and just went on, looking at other plants. You know how you have vague memories of a certain plant that you might have seen somewhere, but didn't know what it was? Its a possibility. Yes, the texture of the leaf is really interesting, and I'm hoping I won't forget that if I ever happen to run across one in the future. I HATE it when the plants are only labeled "tropical." With my luck, I'd buy a slightly different looking spath, thinking its a tacca, like you did, Nan.

Randi