5 nontoxic houseplants for cat and dog owners

I am a horrible gardener, almost every green thing I plant, touch, or even merely look at - eventually succumbs to a slow and horrible death 👻

Nevertheless I do enjoy having some greenery at home. But there is a second problem - I have two cats and one of them always attempts to eat my plants. Because of that - I have an extra layer of difficulty in choosing plants to grow at home - they should be nontoxic.

Today I am going to share with you 5 plants that can be [relatively] easily grown at home and are entirely harmless to cats and dogs.

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1 - Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)

I have this one in my apartment and my cats love sleeping under it 😉

Ideally it requires a rather humid environment but it manages to stay alive even in my super dry room during winter season. It may not look super vivid and lush on my photo, but I assure you that my fern makes it just fine to spring. These plants are also an amazing choice if your room is in a partial/full shade all day long. Boston Fern's leaves will burn and dry out in direct sunlight...

Overall, if I can keep it alive (especially in an environment that is completely unsuited for it), anyone can.

As an alternative to Boston Fern, you can consider a Button Fern (Cliff Brake Fern) - it is just as safe.

Boston Fern

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2 - Bamboo (Phyllostachys aurea)

Bamboos are harmless for our furry pals, but only true bamboos are nontoxic (more on that later).

Sources differ on whether it is easy or hard to grow bamboo indoors... Some sites state that these are super easy to grow, whereas other sources claim that they can be challenging to keep at home. Bamboo does require a lot of sunlight and a humid environment, so keep that in mind before purchasing one.

Now, about that "true bamboo" business. Before purchasing bamboo you should know - there is another plant called bamboo - Lucky Bamboo. You can see people referring to it as curly bamboo, Chinese water bamboo or friendship bamboo. Surprisingly, it is much more popular in stores than actual bamboo. It is however NOT a true bamboo (its scientific name is Dracaena braunii) and it is toxic to cats and dogs.

Phyllostachys aurea	Dracaena braunii
("True" Bamboo)	(Lucky Bamboo)

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3 - Palms

There are various nontoxic palms that you can keep as a house plant, among them are: areca palm, ponytail and parlor palms. Depending on climate and how sunny your room is - they shouldn't be a hassle to grow~

I must insist however, that you always crosscheck with aspca.org whenever you are looking for a palm. There are toxic plants that look similar to palms. Take Dragon Trees for example - they look like a palm, but in reality are a Dracaena Marginata. Recognize the name? It is lucky bamboo's relative, and just like lucky bamboo - it is toxic to our little friends. From aspca.org:

Clinical Signs [of poisoning]:
In cats: dilated pupils, abdominal pain, increased heartrate and drooling. In both cats and dogs: vomiting, depression, inappetence, drooling, incoordination, and weakness.

Nasty 🙀

Parlor Palm

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4 - Phalaenopsis orchids

These are among my favorite flowers, and I didn't even know that I have a list of favorite flowers until now~ An elegant, beautiful plant, especially when in bloom. Flower petals of phalaenopsis orchids are actually edible and are used to garnish food. It may be the case that one morning your cat will see you nibbling on orchids.

That being said I never tried to grow one at home - they look so fragile, I'm afraid I'll kill them.

Phalaenopsis orchids

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5 - Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum)

Supposedly one of the easiest plants to care for, it is safe to keep around cats and dogs.

Spider plants are known for their ability to survive the most horrid conditions and a lot of abuse - an ideal plant for someone like me. It can live in low light rooms and actually prefers soil to completely dry out between watering. So at least it will not immediately die whenever you forget to water it... yet again...

Spider Plant

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Throughout this article you saw me linking aspca.org multiple times. This is a site of The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. It has an exhaustive list of toxic and nontoxic plants for cats, dogs and horses, so whenever you are in doubt just go there and search for a plant that interests you.

As a final note I would add that most cats do not eat poisonous plants because these plants tend to be bitter, so this shouldn't be such a serious problem for majority of pet owners 😉

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Pictures sources: Boston fern, "True" Bamboo, Lucky Bamboo, Parlor palm, Orchids, Spider plant.
Photo with dirty kitty in desperate need of grooming... is mine 😺