Black Bat Plant

The Black Bat Plant (Tacca chantrieri) produces one of the strangest flowers in cultivation: a pair of near black bracts spread like wings above dark blooms, with long thread fine whiskers trailing beneath. The plant is modest at about 0.8m tall and 0.6m across, with broad glossy leaves. It is a collector's plant, and it asks for warmth, deep shade and humidity in return.

Why you'll love it

• A flower nobody recognises. The bat shaped bracts and trailing whiskers look closer to an orchid crossed with a sea creature than a garden plant.
• Genuinely dark blooms. Very few plants flower this close to black, and the colour holds rather than bleaching as the bloom ages.
• Handsome out of flower. Pleated deep green leaves carry the pot for most of the year, so it does not disappear between shows.
• Made for the dark corner. A full shade plant by nature, so the shaded courtyard or dim end of a room that defeats most flowering plants is where it belongs.

Where it works best

Indoors. For most of the country this is the practical answer. A warm room with bright indirect light, out of draught and away from an air conditioner that strips humidity.

Pots and containers. A wide, shallow pot with a rich, open, free draining mix. A container also lets you move it under cover as the weather cools.

Feature planting in the tropics. In tropical and subtropical gardens it goes into the ground in full shade beneath canopy, sheltered from wind.

Growing the black bat plant in Australia

Position and climate. Full shade or dappled light, because direct sun scorches the foliage quickly. It is tropical and subtropical by origin and frost tender, so outside the warm north treat it as an indoor subject. It dislikes cold roots, so keep it off unheated tiles in winter.

Soil and mix. Rich, open and free draining, with composted organic matter or an orchid style bark blend through it. Stagnant heavy mix leads to rot at the rhizome, the usual cause of sudden collapse.

Water and humidity. Keep the mix evenly moist through the warm months and ease back in winter. Humidity matters as much as watering: sit it above a tray of wet pebbles or run a humidifier in dry air. Feed lightly with a liquid fertiliser in spring and summer only.

Pruning. Very little to do. Remove spent flower stems at the base and tidy yellowing leaves. It is a slow grower, so repot every couple of years and divide the rhizome then if you want more plants.

What to expect when it arrives

It comes in two sizes: a single tube, and a 140mm pack of ten for planting a shaded bed or growing a batch on. A tube is a young plant with a few leaves and no flower yet, and given how slowly this species grows, plan on a season or two before the first bloom. The 140mm plants settle faster.

Some leaf marking or a droop after transit is normal for a humidity loving plant, so set it up in shade, keep the mix damp and give it a fortnight. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse the indoor plant collection
• Find more plants for full shade
• Explore exotic and rare plants
• How to keep indoor plants thriving

Common questions

How hard is it to grow?

Harder than an average houseplant, but not temperamental once the basics are right. Warmth, shade, steady moisture and humidity cover almost everything, and most losses come from cold dry air or a sodden mix.

When will it flower?

Through the warmer months, once the plant has size behind it. From a tube expect to wait a season or two, because this is a slow grower that will not bloom until established.

Can I grow it outside in Melbourne or Adelaide?

Not in the ground. It is frost tender and needs sustained warmth and humidity, so in cool temperate and Mediterranean climates it belongs in a pot indoors.