10 Lovely Houseplants & Flowers That Are Safe For Your Cats Too!

Do you love cats and plants? If you are like us, your answer is a resounding yes! It’s no secret that many houseplants are extremely toxic to our pets and are best avoided in our homes. Knowing the safe houseplants for cats saves us a whole lot of worry and allows us to fully enjoy the beauty of plants in our homes.

If your feline is anything like our Dizzy, she does enjoy pretending she’s in the jungle somewhere, weaving and bobbing about. (Usually knocking 1 or 2 over along the way) Sigh.

These 10 beautiful houseplants below may be safe *for* your kitty but *from* your cat may be an entirely different matter 😀

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# 1 – Phalaenopsis Orchids

These are my personal favorites! Phal orchids have an easy elegance that just makes you smile.

For a very long time it has been believed that orchids are difficult to take care of. This is actually not the case at all. It is true that their care requirements are different, however. Once you get the hang of them, they’re not difficult at all. In fact, they are quite hardy so long as you don’t over water them.

They also remove xylene from the air you breathe. If you’ve been painting your home or doing construction in some way, these are handy plants to have around.

Safe for your pets and air purifiers too – you can’t go wrong with Phalaenopsis orchids! If you are curious how to take care of these beauties, have a look at Potted Opulence.

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#2 – African Violets

African Violets are wonderful for ensuring the safety of your cat and yet bringing pops of color into your home as well!

You might not know that African Violets also made NASA’s list of top air purifying plants for your home. These powerful air cleaners also stimulate your brain with the color purple. It has been shown scientifically that seeing the color purple releases adrenaline and oxygen, creating a natural calming effect. How about that!

Another great perk of this particular houseplant? If you suffer from severe allergies, this plant likely will not trigger a reaction for you.

If you already have or are considering bringing an African Violet in to your home, here is a great article on how best to care for them.

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# 3 – Boston Ferns

Boston Ferns are amazing plants. Widely considered to be one of the oldest plants on earth, this powerful air cleaner will wow you with its benefits.

They are hardy, helpful to the environment around you and really add something special to your space.

They don’t like direct sunlight but a couple hours of indirect bright light per day should keep them doing well in your home. Here is a great Boston Fern care article. These safe houseplants for cats will bring you a whole lot of enjoyment.

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# 4 – Echevaria (Succulents)

Another favorite of mine. These echevaria plants are so unique! Available in a wide range of colors and designs, they are low maintenance and high design. 🙂

Echevaria are best friends to folks who tend to forget watering the houseplants. Much like Phalaenopsis orchids, Echevaria will surely rot when over watered. They can stand neglect much quicker than they can too much H20 love!

Succulents & Sunshine is an excellent place to find the best succulent care articles.

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# 5 – Spider Plant

My husband loves this one! Admittedly, I have grown to love them too.

They are incredibly easy care plants and have such lush green colors with light green to white stripes throughout their foliage. Just as there are with most plants, the different variegation options available make this a plant to enjoy.

As with several others in this list, they are powerful air purifiers too! They remove formaldehyde, styrene, carbon monoxide and benzene efficiently.

Spider plants are the perfect addition to you and your feline family home 🙂

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# 6 – Gerber Daisies

Who can resist the array of color that gerber daisies bring into our lives? I know that I can’t! They are bright, cheerful and absolutely lovely.

Did you know that Gerber Daisies are great for sleep?  They release oxygen all night long and have been shown to benefit people with sleep apnea!

Gerber daisies do require lots of bright light, so dim spaces are not a good match for these beautiful flowers. You could always move them to a bright spot in your home during the day, then relocate them to your sleeping quarters when you retire for the evening. 😉

Growing Gerber Daisies indoors can be done and you’ll love the joy they bring you and your cat!

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# 7 – Calathea

Native to South America, these tropical plants are pretty fascinating. There’s a good chance you’ve heard of the “prayer plant” which is a type of Calathea. They open their leaves during the day and fold them up at night, appearing as if they’re praying.

Calathea can be somewhat high maintenance to care for, but once you know what they need, it becomes much easier. Few plants have prettier foliage than these do!

This Calathea care article will teach you everything you need to know in order to help them thrive and fill your home with amazing beauty and grace.

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# 8 – Roses

It’s rare you find someone who doesn’t appreciate the beauty in roses! The colors, the shapes, the smell, they’re just wonderful!

Thankfully, roses are also on the safe houseplants for cats list! It is worth noting that if the thorns are still intact on your roses, kitty could still get hurt if she rubs her face all over things in your home. Thankfully, that’s the only concern roses will bring you.

Now you don’t have to wonder if you have to choose between your flowers or your cat. 🙂

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# 9 – Christmas Cactus

These unique plants offer beautiful blooms through the holidays and make great gifts for people who love plants and cats.

Caring for the Christmas Cactus is not very difficult so if you’re not exactly blessed with a “green thumb,” you shouldn’t need to worry.

Here is some great Christmas Cactus care advice that will help you cherish this great plant for a long time to come.

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# 10 – Cast Iron Plant

We love these! Their huge, showy green foliage really flourish in the poorest of light conditions.

Bill rescued ours from an individual who left the plant out to die in the yard after moving out of where they were residing. We thought it was dead, but when left in a shady area outdoors, it regained its health and is now flourishing!

Our Dizzy is constantly hiding behind this plant and ambushing us as we walk by, so that is something to consider! Haha! 😀 In all seriousness though, this is a great plant that is extremely hardy and beautiful at the same time. It will really fill the space in your home nicely.

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Do You Love Plants?

What’s your personal favorite plant in your home or outdoors? I’d love to hear!

If you are looking for an exhaustive list on toxic vs non-toxic plants for pets, have a look at this great article from the ASPCA. You’ll find pretty much all the answers you need there.

A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.

Gertrude Jekyll

I love this quote above because plants and flowers just bring something so special into our lives. We do learn patience. We do learn how to empathize. We learn how to grow, both literally and also within our own selves. There is so much value to be had from loving God’s creation for us to enjoy. 🙂

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Preventing Plant Destruction

Have you always wanted to enjoy plants in your home, but your oh so beloved feline keeps chewing, clawing, using it as a personal restroom stop, knocking over and all the other antics they get in to?

As plant lovers, we understand! Having plants & flowers in the home that are safe for cats is just the beginning. As I mentioned in the opening, being safe for kitty and from kitty are 2 very different things.

Here is a wonderful video with helpful ideas that we found useful to potentially help you solve the plant vs. cat problems in your home. Enjoy!

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Thank you so much for reading! I appreciate you more than you know!

If you don’t mind, please share this article with your friends if you have found it fun and helpful! Thank you sincerely!