I'd agree, they grow in a very messy sprawling kind of way. The large dark leaves suggest they get little sunlight, and the ariel roots (aka alien tendrills...) suggest they like humidity, so they're certainly a forest plant. The one I used to have was weaved in and out of the railings at the top of my stairs, it must have been 15 foot long before the cat decided to dig all the soil out the pot and broke the main trunk...

I recently bought myself a new cheese plant (only £5 at Tesco, who stock a few commonly used house plants). Anyway, this time I went for the type that is grown as a clump of leaves sprouting from the pot, not the ones grown up a pole. I find the pole plants look good for a few years, then they lose the lower down leaves and start to rush upwards quickly overflowing their support and looking messy. I expect the plants grown as a clump will keep their shape better and hopefully when leaves drop off it won't show.

Anyway, would a cheese plant grow outside? I've never seen them outside, but aparently a lot of garden experts are saying you can even grow a yucca outside now, which was once considered an indoors-only plant like swiss cheese plants are.