houseplants

I have a few aloe plants at home and they will grow in almost anything as long as you don't water them too much.  I had a little baby I picked from my lager one and put in it a plastic cup, because I didn't have anywhere else to put it, and a few months later I found it in a place I forgot about and it was still growing stong.  I think as long as the metal doesn't rust you should not have a problem.  I would think stainless steel would be the way to go.  If it's nickle based I would be more worried about the rust eating away your metal than the plant getting toxins from it.

I agree with Xebby. I think it should be fine.
 
I've got mine planted in a ceramic pot that I painted at one of those do-it-yourself pottery studios. It says "Flower Pot" on it, because I'm not creative. [8D]

flower pot []
 
thanks! i just planted it, i poked some hole in the bottom of a baggy and stretched it in there first because i think the container is copper, this way if/when it starts rusting out i can just pull it right out. i had to plant a pothos clipping too, but that one got a real pot, i hope it lives, it did really well in water for the past 3 months.
now if i can only figure out why my spider plant looks like crap.

Does the metal container have drainage holes?  If it doesn't, I'd put some small rocks in the bottom and then put another plant pot inside that.

Joyce

Metal and glass containers are not well suited for long term growth of any plant . . . drainage holes or not.  The reason being that neither one is porous and will not allow oxygen exchange with the soil.  Cermaic or clay is ideal as it allows the soil to breathe and results in healthier plants.

I grow bonsai tree's as a hobby . . . I've done a lot of research and experimentation!  Here's two of my "no-fur" babies . . . the one on the right is actually an african violet.

I wanna learn how to do that!

i figured out why my spider plant looked like crap, dh says it was rootbound, when i pulled it out it looked kinda creepy, i couldn't even see any soil, there were roots encompassing the entire thing, it was one solid unit, so it got to move on up to an ice cream bucket with holes drilled in the bottom....i am so cheap, but at least i recycle right? the aloe babies have really perked up since i planted them too. i will figure out this plant thing someday, i looove having plants in the house, it is so much more comfortable.

i have to laugh about the bonsai's, when i visited my old art teacher recently we laughed about one time some students threw some pot seeds in one of her plants and they grew...she took one home and put it in a tiny pot and kept pruning it and kept it in her front window, she called it bonsiuana, her husband kept asking her to remove her science experiment. she has a ton of really cool plants, and the biggest rubber plant (not sure if thats what its called, looks like green rubber sticks) i have ever seen, its taller than i am.

gaylemarie, you can actually trim the roots to keep it in the original pot.  Use a sharp knife to trim off a couple inches on the bottom and around the sides.  Add some fresh soil to the pot, and voila....gives the plant more room to grow.  You will have to do this a couple times per year.

Yup, root pruning is essential to bonsai, but potted plants in general.  What the above individual did is referred to as "slip-potting" and generally not good for plants unless you cot some roots off on the bottom and sides.  Pruning the roots stimulates them to grow more . . .

Bonsai is actually quite easy (well, certain aspects of it are) if you can keep plants alive . . . I'd suggest starting with a nice easy plant like a schefflera or ficus.

so, should i pull it back out and cut some of the roots off? will it grow ok and get bigger if i dont?

My first bonsai I put together myself was a ginkgo, it was growing great untill I left for a month and forgot to have some one water my plants.  I even had some nice moss growing alongside it.  My other was a ficus but I ended up giving it away.  If I had more space and a perminate place to live I would love to start growing bonsais agean.  I have all the supplies but just don't have the lace to grow them. 
 
One of my future plans in life is to have my own green house.  I would love to have fresh veggies year round.

Myself, I'd be afraid to start snipping roots.  I'd be afraid I'd cut into a major one and kill the plant. I find it easier to just move it into a pot about an inch bigger.

Joyce

ORIGINAL: fuzzy_dogs_mom

Myself, I'd be afraid to start snipping roots.  I'd be afraid I'd cut into a major one and kill the plant. I find it easier to just move it into a pot about an inch bigger.

Joyce

This is actually a very common concern . . . but in reality, it isn't really an issue.  There really isn't so much of a concern of trimming a main root, its more an issue to trimming too much.  The large roots we see when removing a plant from its pot are actually no more than a nutrient highway, they don't take in anything from the soil.  Its the fine, threadlike roots - aka feeder roots - that are more important.  This is how bonsai tree's can be so large yet fit into tiny little pots.  Trimming large roots (as long as you don't trim too much) will stimulate the production of more of the desirable feeder roots and actually strengthen that root.

As for the aloe plant, yes it will continue to grow, and it will get bigger if you leave it as is.  But, you will shorten the life of the plant if you don't trim the roots.  It will also gain strength and vigor if you trim the roots.  If you want to trim them, take the plant back out and use a large bread knife to saw off the bottom 1/3 of the root mass.  Then using your fingers, just rough up the sides a bit to loosen the roots.

ok, i think i feel more comfortable cutting peices off it now that you went into detail, although i hope its not significant that the plant in question is a spider plant not an aloe plant. i am a weenie, i probably would have only snipped a few little bits, 1/3 of the root mass sounds like alot, but im trusting you on this, you sound like you know what you are talking about. so tomorrow i am going to hack off a big chunk of the plants roots, with a big knife, and i'm going to laugh maniacally while i do it just to make it more fun [8D]
 
next week i would like to learn how to prune my pothos so it will grow more leaves, if you don't mind tutoring me on that as well i would really appreciate it.