025. Poisons: Non-Poisonous Plants
Description
This article is from the Basic Health Care FAQ, posted to rec.pets.cats newsgroup. Maintained by Cindy Tittle Moore with numerous contributions by others.
025. Poisons: Non-Poisonous Plants
So what plants can cats nibble on with abandon?
To start with, you can assume anything with square stems (in cross-section) and opposite leaves is OK. That's the hallmark of the mint family, which includes catnip, _Nepeta_ and _Coleus_. Catnip can be grown in a bright window in the winter, but the cats may knock it off the sill. Coleus is easy, and kind of bright and cheerful with its colored leaves. Swedish Ivy, _Plectranthus_, is also in this family and incredibly easy to grow. Good hanging basket plant. Tolerates kitty-nibbles well.
* Tulips are OK, daffodils and lily of the valley are not.
* Miniature roses.
* Cyclamens, the genus _Cyclamen_, seem to be OK.
* African violet, Saintpaulia; Hanging African Violet (=Flame Violet), Episcia; gloxinia, Sinningia; goldfish plant, Hypoestes; and lipstick vine, Aeschynanthus are all members of the african violet family, the Gesneriaceae.
* All the cacti are fine -- but not all succulents are cactus. Make sure it has spines like a prickly pear or an old-man cactus. There are some look-alike foolers that are not good to eat! (But they don't have spines). (One cactus, Lophophora (peyote) will get you arrested.)
* Airplane plant, also called spider plant, Chlorophytum, is pretty commonly available and easy to grow. They come in solid green or green and white striped leaves, usually grown in hanging baskets.
* Wax begonias, Begonia semperflorens are easy and non-toxic. These are the little begonias you see in shady areas outside now in the north; in the southern states, they're often grown as winter outdoor plants. The other begonia species are OK too, but tougher to grow.
* Sweet potatoes, Ipomoea, if you can find some that haven't been treated to prevent sprouting! Looks like common philodendron at first glance.
* Shrimp plant, Beleperone guttata.
* Prayer plant, Maranta (needs humidity).
* Burn plant, Aloe vera.
* Grape ivy, Cissus (several different leaf shapes).
* Asparagus fern, Asparagus (several species).
* If you've got the humidity, any of the true ferns are OK, including maidenhair, Adaiantum, Boston fern (lots of variants!) Nephrolepis, Victorian Table Fern, Pteris...
* Wandering jew, Zebrina, and its close relatives that are often called "Moses in the boat" -- the flowers are in a pair of boat-shaped bracts.
* Impatiens, or patience plant, Impatiens.
* Common geranium, Pelargonium, in any of the many leaf forms and scents.
* AVOID anything with a milky juice or colored sap. Almost guaranteed toxic (wild lettuce and dandelion are the two major exceptions).
* Poinsettas: Many books continue to indicate that poinsettias are poisonous to animals and children. The Ohio State University conducted some tests and confirms that they are NOT poisonous to children or animals. The furor was because of a story about a child who ate a bunch of poinsettia leaves and died. According to Norsworthy's 1993 Feline Practice (thanks to Kay Klier), eating leaves will give a cat an upset stomach and maybe some diarrhea that can be cured with Kaopectate.
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