Tacca chantrieri ‘Green Isle’, alias bat flower

A clever seller, this Myanmar lady at the border market. She quickly responds to my puzzled look at her obscure cuttings and pulls out pictures of the full-grown plants: mesmerizing species of Tacca.
“Madam, this is the white one,” she says, holding up a cutting. In the picture it looks magnificent, larger and flashier than the black variety in my garden. My hesitation dwindles. “I’ll give it a try,” I answer, unconvinced yet hopeful.
Nine months later a bud appears. In a few days, the stalk rises high above the leaves, and reveals its real identity: green!