Cats and Houseplants

I came across a Pinterest called "cats in the garden" that I really love to follow.  It is all pictures of different cats as they coexist in people's garden and I thought that cats are a good subject for this special post.  Many people will tell you that cats and houseplants just don't mix.  I can't disagree more. You just have to know how to protect your house and plants just like you would if you had children.

First there is the digging 

It is a natural instinct for a cat to think that the any loose dirt is a potty box.  So how do you get them to stop? First be sure that the litter box is always a clean choice.  Next make your plants a less inviting choice.  The best way is to cover the soil.  An aluminum foil cover for the soil is the cheapest and fastest.  All you have to do is cut a circle the same size as the top of you pot, cut a hole in the center to allow the plant to emerge from the center and place in pot.  It might not be the most organic look but it gets the job done. You can also plant a ground cover like you would in the garden.  Baby's Tears (Soleirolia solerolii) is a nice choice, as well as thyme or moss.  Another option is mulch.  Cats do not like the smell of cedar or eucalyptus so these will keep them out of the plants.  This only works if you can tolerate the smell and you remember to refresh the mulch when it loses it scent.  The one that works best for me is a pebble mulch.  you can get small gravel for little plants and larger stones for floor plants.  AND the stones help to solve the next problem we want to talk about.

Cats like to climb

They also like to see out the same windows you want to use for your plants.  Since two objects cannot occupy the same space, one will have to move.  No cat owner can honestly say that they have never come home to a plant on it's side, dirt everywhere and a cat stretched out where the plant use to be.  The answer to this problem is to either make sure there is room for the cat and/or make the plant too heavy for the cat to move.  Get were the stones come in?  But that is not enough.  Make sure you have some weight in the plant's pot so that it does not become top heavy.  If you are using plastic pots, then you might want to put some heavy rocks in the bottom of them. The best solution is a plastic grow pot inside a beautiful ceramic decorative pot that can add weight and encourage good watering practice.

Teeth marks?

The last thing to think about is that cats, especially indoor cats, like to chew on green plants. Besides having raggedy leaves on your beautiful plants, there is always a concern that your cat may chew on something that will make it deathly sick.  I mentioned some of these plants in the post entitled "Is It Poisonous" and you might want to reread it.  The good news is that cats are trainable and as long as you give yours a plant it can chew on, it will stay away from the others.  Start the training as soon as you introduce your cat to your house.  Give your new cat a plant.  The one I have used for years is that green filler you buy in the spring for your container planting.  Its common name is an Asparagus Fern and will live for many years before the stems becomes hard and not tempting to chew.  It has nice long soft stems and you can encourage the cat to grab it by playfully dangling the leaves over its head.  Now you have established that it is okay to chew on this plant. When you see your cat display an interest in another plant, take it to the designated plant and show again that this plant is the one to chew. You will be surprised how quickly your cat will learn. Because of the inquisitive nature of cats, you may find that you will have to repeat this lesson with each new plant brought into your cat's world but the older your cat gets the less problem you will have.

I hope that this post will help you deal better with you mischievous roommate.  If you have any other questions or problems please forward them to me at houseplantsos@gmail.com or just add in them to the comment section below.

Sincerely,

k.k.jones

Is it Poisonous?

One of my readers sent me this question that has me talking about our Poinsettia plant again and I thought that this would be a good time to talk about the toxicity of houseplants.

The Poinsettia

First, the Poinsettia has been long rumored to be poisonous. The story of a poisoning of a child in 1919 after ingesting a few leaves cannot be confirmed as there is no medical record of the incident. The truth is that many tests have been on rats and rabbits that were feed large amounts of this plant with no effect.  However, the milky sap has been know to be an skin irritant and there are toxins in the plant that may have an adverse effect on some small children and pets. The death of a small dog in Switzerland was attributed to eating Poinsettia leaves is one isolated occurrence.

The Aracae Family

The most common Dieffenbachia

Dieffenbachia

The most dangerous houseplant in my opinion is the Dieffenbachia.  The sap of the plant when it comes in contact with moist parts of the body will cause immediate swelling with redness and stabbing pain.  The good thing about this is that if leaf is chewed, the swelling will hopefully prevent swallowing.  The bad part is that that the swelling can last several days with a lot of drooling.  In severe cases there will be a loss of speech - hence its name which translates to Dumb Cane. 


The Dieffenbachia is favored for its large patterened leaf.  The oldest one I know is the one pictured above.  I remember my mother had one in her livingroom when I was growing up.  It finally fell over when it reached a heighth of 8 feet and the ceiling of the room was only 71/2 feet.  Since then there have been many different leaf patterns offerings on the market.  I have two of them pictured here.
 



More plants in the Araceae family to watch are the Anthurium and Philodendron.  The Anthurium is loved for its simple bloom that comes in a variety of reds, pinks and whites.  A larger variety also has a purple blossom.  It has not had any case of serious poisoning reported.  The Philodendron which is a large genus has been responsible for skin complaints.  Care should be used around animals as there was a report written in 1961 by Greer that cited 72 cases of cats in which 37 died from eating Philodendrons.


This picture is the split leave variety call the Saddle Leaf  Philodendron. This is a large family so if you are not sure ask.

Other plants to be careful with are in the Amaryllis family which include the Daffodil. The poisonous part of these plants is the bulb and most reported poisonings were when the bulb was confused with an onion.  Digestion of the leaves will cause salivation, vomiting and diarrhoea.  As you can see, this can be very dangerous for a small child.

If it happens call for help

There is a lot to remember so try to keep it simple.  Take care in where you place your plants.  If you have large floor plants, it is OK to put a stake that identifies what it is.  Have the Poison Control number right next to your Doctor's.  Then if you find that you child, dog or cat has chewed on a plant you will have the information at your disposal for the center when you call.   It is best to be safe than sorry. 

I want to thank my reader who submitted this question.  It is an important issue to remember when bringing plants into our homes.  If you have any other questions, post them here or email me at houseplantsos@gmail.com .

k.k.jones