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Sansevieria trifasciata 'Bantels Sensation'



A sensational cultivar patented by Gustav Bantel of St.Louis in 1946 - I hope he made a mint out of it, because it is wonderful. Tall narrow leaves are striped with pure white and blue-green.
It is one of my favourite cultivars though I find it impossible to grow (frustratingly my mother found it simple on an east facing windowsill). For me, it had to be kept almost dry and then it didn't grow. If it was allowed to remain wet (or even slightly damp) then it would rot off.

Glasshouse Works say:

"White and ocher-cream stripes with occasional yellow and dark green furrows accent the very erect succulent leaves; the "White Snakeplant" typically has a narrow green edge. A 1940s laurentii sport originating in St. Louis. Because this is a trifasciata cultivar, the leaves are far more erectly rigid, of thicker substance, and often more numerous per head than those of Sansevieria 'Manolin' with which it seems to be occassionally confused among hobbyists. Avoid chill as the leaves are so extremely variegated that brown spots soon appear if exposed to cold temperatures. This has long been among the most popular rare Sansevierias we offer. We will ship this only during the warmer months of the year.

Missouri Botanical Garden say:

"'Bantel's Sensation' is a variegated selection of snake plant that features dark grey-green leaves with contrasting, vertical, creamy white stripes. The upright leaves will reach up to 3' tall and 1.25" wide. Will spread slowly to form colonies up to 2' wide. Creamy white, tubular, slightly fragrant flowers are held on a 1-2' tall, upright, spike-like inflorescence."
11th April 2007



San Marcos Growers say:

"This plant was discovered by Gustav Bantel of St. Louis, Missouri who patented the plant (the long expired Plant Patent PP796) in 1948. On the patent application Mr. Bantel stated "The primary object in carrying out this invention was to fix the unusual dark olive green leaves and silver white longitudinal stripes of the leaves, their slender transversely concave rapier shape, and their nearly vertical stiff erectness, diverging upwardly from a short basal rosette." He described the plant as "similar to ordinary sansevieria … however, it differs distinctly in having its slender ensiform leaves stiffly erect, deeply channeled in the lower portion, extending to 24 inches or more in height with a greatest width about 1 1/4 inches well above the middle and then gradually tapering in graceful curvature to an acute stiff point … In color the inner concave face is mostly dark olive green streaked with silver white with outer convexly curved face much lighter with dark green streaks narrower and more numerous and interspersed with narrow streaks of silvery white." Sansevieria trifasciata 'Bantel's Sensation' won the coveted Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit in 1993.

Extracts from Bantel's patent application from 1946 (USPP796) say:

"This new variety is a sport of the variety S. laurentii and has been asexually reproduced by division and from rhizomes, and its characteristics have become permanently fixed.
The primary object in carrying out this invention was to fix the unusual dark olive green and silver-white longitudinal stripes of the leaves, their slender transversely concave rapier shape, and their nearly vertical stiff erectness, diverging upwardly from a short basal rosette.
This new variety of Sansevieria is easily distinguished from other known varieties by its unusual longitudinal Stripes, its stiff rapier-shaped leaves, and its compact growth with little tendency of the leaves to spread or bend.
Having thus disclosed my discovery, I claim:
A new and distinct variety of Sansevieria, plant, substantially as shown and described, characterized particularly by its stiffly erect ensiform leaves, marked with alternating longitudinal stripes of white and green.
GUSTAV E. BANTEL."



28th July 2007 14th September 2007 6th October 2007 7th November 2008 23rd March 2009



References:
  • Glasshouse Works, https://www.glasshouseworks.com/sansevieria-trifasciata-bantels-sensation&search=Bantel , accessed 27.01.2025.
  • Missouri Botanical Garden, https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=250532&isprofile=0& , accessed 27.01.2025.
  • San Marcos Growers, https://www.smgrowers.com/products/plants/plantdisplay.asp?plant_id=3767 , accessed 27.01.2025.
  • Chahinian, B. Juan - The Sansevieria trifasciata varieties, Trans Terra Publishing 1986.
  • Chahinian, B. Juan - The Splendid Sansevieria, 2005.
  • Stover, Hermine - The Sansevieria Book, 1983.
  • 'Sansevieria', Journal of the International Sansevieria Society.