I would like to point out that when an Australian says "pot plant", they mean house plant. We had some issues with this linguistic distinction when Mrs. Myrmecos first moved here from Melbourne and started telling everyone about the great pot plants we were growing on the porch.
I do congratulate the fine folks at Antweb, though, for having the emotional maturity to let the vocabulary slide and just answer the question.
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Must derive from the UK as 'pot plant' (as in a potted plant) is a common phrase here.
Yes, one does have to be careful when translating from one varient of English to the other, especially for the more informal usages. Finding an an on your fanny migrates a bit in meaning from North America to Australia. And if I ever hear that Alex is rooting for a particular ant, then I'm not sure what I should think.
I had to explain to a colleague, who was practising a presentation on agriculture in China, why she should not start off by saying 'China is in the shape of a cock' on this side of the Atlantic.
As was once said of USA and UK (could also be said of Australia) -- Two great nations separated by a common language!
It gets even better in translation. Entire websites are devoted to amusign examples of such, e.g. http://www.engrish.com/
Alex,
Pot plants are flowers or shrubs in pots outside the
house, and house plants are flowers or small shrubs
inside the house. I hope this has cleared things up,
as mother knows best.