sell it/give it away on craigslist/freecycle?

That's a shame. It's a cool looking plant. Has it ever flowered? I agree with the previous post. I offer plants that are too big to mail on Craigslist and Freecycle. I almost always find a taker. That reminds me, I have some 10' areca palms that I had around the pool that I have to list. I actually think they are some of the ugliest palms. Even if I had the space I wouldn't take them in. I hope you find a home for your pandanus.

Can you air-layer these or just behead and re-root?

Well, I can guarantee it will croak in the greenhouse, but I agree Pandanus make horrible house plants- very sharp and uncomfortable and they do get huge. Pretty sure that is not a species you can behead and have it grow back (at least not the top half, nor even the bottom half if it has not started to branch yet). Gonna have to find a new home for it... perferably in a zone 9b climate or warmer.

Thanks.

Hoove, never dwelt with Craigslist or Freecycle.

Pandanus has been in the family so long I hate giving it up, but would. One problem, there are very few people in IL that would want a huge, thorny plant. LOL.

Most people here buy, 'tropicals and succulents' in spring, then toss in autumn. They usually stick w/smaller plants, until death, 'of the plant.' The majority are into outdoor gardening.

Amccour, don't think it can be decapitated, but, not 100% certain either.

Christopher, what did you end up doing w/yours? Donating selling?

Karen, nope, never bloomed. I didn't know they did. Wonder what flowers look like???
Karen, there are very few plants I dislike, but I agree with you about Arecas. They're not my favorite palms either.

Lz, what do you mean it'd croak in a gh?? Why is that?

You suggested finding a home in z9b. Shipping would be terribly expensive. I wouldn't know where to begin locating a large enough box. lol.

Thanks again for advice. Toni

Sorry, I meant garage. Not a cold hardy species. Damages occur to most around 30F and the cold hardy ones around 27F. Any lower and it will likely croak.

It's a dioceous plant. Not sure what the flowers look like but the female produces a large clustered fruit that I think might be edible. I've only seen it once the fruit has formed, never the actual flowers.

I get rid of stuff on Freecycle and Craigslist fairly often. I've never had any problems with weirdos but I never have anyone pick anything up unless Bruce is home.

Toni:

Never owned this plant, only dealt with them when I worked in a greenhouse years ago. Nasty serrations on the leaves, and they took up a lot of space. Not my favourite, to be honest. Even the common name bugs me! :)

Christopher

Lz, thanks. Glad you mentioned temps. Our garage is unheated, and on the coldest nights drop 0F or colder. Rather it's a bit squashed then a goner.

Karen, a few people emailed me in the past asking where I got my Pandanus. They were looking for a different species, P. amaryllifolius. It's used in Asian dishes. I don't know which species mine is, but it's not amaryllifolius.
I Googled info and a pic of the fruit. Animals, (bats, rats, crabs, elephants and Monitor Lizards) eat the fruit which resemble pineapple.

Pananus is also used for weaving, medication, clothing, decorations, fishing and religious uses.

I wonder if it'd fruit/flower in a pot. Probably not, but you never know. Some plants flower when we least expect it.

Maybe next spring I'll place an ad on Craigslist. The weather was fairly warm the last couple days, but while walking my dog around 9pm, it started snowing. Snow showers. Hope we don't get hit like the poor people in the eastern states.

Karyn, haven't you seen the Craigslist movie? lol.
There's a man who lives up north of Chicago. For years he placed ads in a paper called Tradin' Times. 'People sold everything from from plants to cars/trucks.' I found his ad, called him. He was very pleasant until I mentioned a dh. His mood changed, he acted different, distant.
Don't know if this is truth or fiction, but word was, he was a pervert. Lured women to his home..Not like the Craigslist Killer, but his intentions were to meet women. While talking to him, 'before hearing the rumors,' I got a bad feeling, decided minutes in our conversation not to go to his house. BTW, he placed ads every edition, for years.
After a month watching Halloween movies, I wouldn't dream of going, even if he listed, Free Plants. lol.

Christopher. Did the snow stop, yet? I hope your electric is working. I forgot the exact number, but they reported thousands w/o electric. How are houses heated w/o electric?

I never expected the Pandanus to grow so big..not in a container.
Funny. Think it was my second plant book. A picture of a nice-looking Screw Pine in a pot. The author joked, 'women wearing nylon stockings should avoid nearing the leaves.' lol. But he also stated, Pandanus growing in pots will never exceed 4'. lol. Wrong! One advatage is they're slow-growers. Got it at HD in 1999. It had about 7 leaves, under 10" tall. I honestly didn't think it'd get much larger. BTW, it's only been repotted, once. (Since you worked with Pandanus, I'm certain you know the reason.)

I dread ridding a plant that's been in the family so long, but if it goes to a good home with plenty of sun and room, I'll feel better. lol.

Thanks everyone. I'll decide next spring/summer, once temps are warm enough to transport. Toni

The culinary pandanus is definitely a safer plant. lol I occasionally see frozen leaves for sale at the Asian market and have a few friends that use it in rice dishes but I've never tried it.

I've been pining for such a dish myself, Karyn, but haven't found a recipe yet I could needle you with. Am I such a sap?

upload a photo if you can

Yes, I too would like to see a pic pls. Toni. I don't know of this plant at all, but had a friend that wanted the cooking variety a few yrs. ago.

Would love a peek pls.

Karen/Jeff..have you looked for Pandanus recepies online? I'm certain there are many.

Karen, yeah, I think there are safer Pandanus than thorny varieties, lol. Who'd be able to swallow thorns?
I've never seen Pandanus leaves in a store. What do they look like? Do they have thorns? Are leaves stiff?

There's information on Wiki. I just read the leaves are used in ice cream, particularly chocolate.

Like I said, my Pandanus is squashed among other plants now, but I have a couple older pics.
It's top heavy, so leaning. Sorry about that..

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Again, sorry it's leaning. I don't have a larger pot and it's potted in light soil. That's another thing it needs repotting. Right now, it's in mostly Perlite. The reason. I ran out of soil/medium, and weight.

Wish I could cut the top off, and see if leaves regrow. Does anyone know if this would work? I don't want to kill it.

Well, might be Pandanus utilis, but leaves look a tad floppy for that species. But it could be worse... P tectorum and some of the other common species can get really long leaves (twice that long) and the leaf teeth can tear flesh easily just passing by and brushing up against them. As I mentioned before, cutting the head off this plant is unlikely to result in a living plant.

I think the culinary pandanus leaves are similar to an amaryllis. They look like a green block of frozen stuff at the store.

Found this online:

Look for fresh pandanus leaves in Southeast Asian markets; they are flown in from Hawaii and are available on a sporadic basis. You need only two to three whole leaves to flavor a couple of cups of coconut milk. Simmer ten to fifteen minutes, or until the milk is richly flavored. Squeeze all the juice out from the leaves before discarding; these last drops are the most fragrant. If you are not able to find the fresh leaves, look for frozen ones carried by Thai markets. Frequently, the imported leaves from Thailand (labeled sometimes as "pandan" or "pandal") are even more fragrant than the fresh Hawaiian ones. Use the dried cut leaves only as a last resort, or substitute with a few drops of the green essence sold in little bottles identified as "bai toey."

Found this recipe but it doesn't look very appetizing. lol

http://www.ucancookthai.com/language-english/thai-recipes/desserts/content-sangkaya.htm

This one looks better.

http://johndlee.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Make-Thai-Pandanus-Fried-Chicken

Toni, its a HUGE plant for sure! You definitely need to find it a home with plenty of space, which at the moment according to you is NOT your house,lol...Good luck and I hope you find a home for it, its a VERY nice plant!

Karen, that "-Thai-Pandanus-Fried-Chicken" sounds Yummy!

Oh Toni! That is HUGE! What will you do????

I would take it off your hands and out it into my garage, that is if I had sufficient light.
Beautiful as always and just a beautiful plant to sit on someones lawn in Florida for sure. I am sure it would love it there!

Too bad none of us know of anyone that lives in Florida or some other warmer climate that visits your area that can grab it along the way back to bring it back to the south and plant it. It is just too beautiful to let go of.

Mike:-))0$^%&^&^)

Lz..I Googled a pic of P. utilis..Pandanus look great growing in the ground..the trunks are amazing!!!!
Too bad my eyes are larger than my house. lol

Karen, you going to try any of the recepies you found?

Pug, you're right, I should have posted in summer. It's chilly, but not freezing, still, people are more likely to drive on warmer days. With the holidays coming.........

Mike, I'm sure it'd do great grown in the ground somewhere warm.
Like Lz said, it'd die in an unheated garage. Your garage, too..lol.

Air roots are starting to push it upwards, which makes it taller.

I could place in the basement, but it wouldn't get light. Two small south, two small north windows..Wonder what would happen if it was left in the basement, to dormancy, 'no water/light,' until spring..

Thanks for everone's help. I appreciate it..Toni

Outdoors in summer dry and no humidity to speak of California in a pot...it appears to grow a more compact crown. A saving grace. I actually would like it to only get 3-4' tall and wide with branching and aerial roots. That's a show container plant and I don't need one of these as a tree. Something different.

I want to grow this from seeds, but have had no success so far. need advice.