Tacca chantrieri Seeds - Bat plant

Tacca chantrieri, also called Bat plant, produces a strange but fascinating, mysterious-looking inflorescence of a very sombre hue of brownish-purple. It spreads out its bracts like a bat in flight, revealing under its 'wings' a bouquet of small, drooping flowers accompanied by a cluster of long filaments that gracefully hang down. The bloom is carried by a stem emerging from a basal clump of elegant, elongated, shiny green foliage.  Native to the tropical regions of Asia, this tender plant should be grown in a hot, humid greenhouse, in a bright place without direct sunlight.

Tacca chantrieri belongs to the Taccaceae family which is composed of the single genus Tacca. It is a rhizomatous perennial species native to Thailand, Burma (in Myanmar) and regions close to China, and is naturalized and grown in many parts of tropical Asia. In the wild, they are found growing in forests, valleys, along rivers, from 200 m to 1300 m altitude, on acid, humus-rich soil. In ideal growing conditions, it reaches 40 to 50 cm in height (foliage) and then 75 to 90 cm when in bloom.

The plant grows from thick rhizomes. It forms a clump of basal leaves borne on petioles that measure 10 to 30 cm long, and are made up of simple, oblong leaf blades measuring 20 to 50 cm (sometimes 60 cm) long and 7 cm wide. The leaves resemble those of Spathiphyllums. They are glabrous or pubescent, cuneate and feature pointed tips. The foliage is bright green, shiny and are deeply veined. In our climates, they bloom from June to August, then sporadically until December. Only plants that are 2 or 3 years old produce inflorescences. The 'Nivea' variety is a rare form of Tacca integrifolia. This 'batflower plant' owes its name to its very peculiar inflorescence whose shape and colour is reminiscent of this small mammal. The flowers are purplish black, formed of 5 petals and are grouped in clusters (of up to 25 flowers) at the centre of four purplish-brown bracts, two of which are placed in an outward facing position and are particularly developed. Each flower stem produces long, purplish black filaments, measuring 25 cm long, that look like the tails of shooting stars. The fruits are berries that contain many small, kidney-shaped seeds.

Bat flower is a plant for the more experienced gardener and is a curiosity to be closely admired, protected from the cold and scorching sun in a heated greenhouse or conservatory without direct sunlight. It is adorned with beautiful foliage and has one of the most interesting flowers in the plant realm. As such, it is bound to fascinate and hold the interest of the beholder. However, it is sometimes capricious and demanding in terms of growing conditions. When its environment is well suited, this plant grows well, blooms plentifully and even produces baby bat flowers. When a key element is missing, it slowly tires itself out and eventually disappears. Unfortunately, the only way to find out whether you can provide it with good growing conditions is to try growing it. Keep in mind that this plant originates from the hot and humid tropical zones of Asia, and that it undergoes a period of drought during its resting period, which corresponds to the winter season in our latitudes.