i recently purchased a pothos plant at lowes and I was wondering if I replanted it into unfertalized soil, would it be ok to put in a reptile enclosure and if so how long does it take to become safe if the reptile nibbles on the leaves?

The general rule of thumb with plants puchased at a store is to repot and wait 4-6 months for the fertilizers to run their course. Most plants in a store are over-fertilized and sprayed with pesticides to make them attractive to buyers.

__________________
Answers are great. But I prefer questions!

Visit me at www.jaysreptiles.com

pothos is ok, i use if for my dart frogs. I just bought my plants a week ago and all I did was rinse off the leaves and clean the dirt from the roots. Then replanted it. If my frogs (which are super sensitive to bad chemicals) are fine, then the reptiles should be ok, just really rinse off the plant, and the roots.

__________________
-Adam

"Help Protect our Planet from Overcollection, Purchase Aquacultured Livestock and Captive Bred Herps"

I would wait a while before putting your plants in. Most plants, as Jay said, are sprayed heavily while they are on the shelves at places like Lowes and Home Depot, most nurseries spray as well but no where as heavily. You could ask the person in the section, but seeing as you already have them its probably too late for that.

What type of reptile do you plan on keeping it with that is going to nibble on the leaves? Im more worried about the crickets nibbling and then being gobbled up before the insecticides take their toll.

It might be over cautious, but better safe than sorry no?

my vet said to try putting the pothos plant in with my veiled cham. and she might nibble on it but most dont. just mostly for hiding purposes. i really dont want to take any chances with the pesticideds so I would rather wait the couple of months to be safe. thank you for your replies though.