Growing plants indoors has become increasingly popular. They can make your home look nicer and your mood much brighter. What a lot of people don't know is that house plants can be toxic. It doesn't have to be something you fret over though.
Plenty of house plants can be dangerous to grow. The most common house plants, the kind you find everywhere from supermarkets to plant shops, are some of the most poisonous. Philodendrons, pothos, peace lilies, syngoniums, snake plants, anthuriums, zz plants, and dieffenbachia. They all have the potential to harm you but that doesn't put us off keeping them in our homes. We simply don't eat them.
So long as you keep the plant and pet separate from each other, the danger of your plants harming your friend is low. Move them to a shelf out of reach or into another room entirely. My small companion came after my large plant collection. My solution was to adapt my home and to teach him not to fuss with them. I don't fret too much over the situation but I know a lot of people do, and prefer to stick to pet-friendly plants. Whether you need to or not depends on your companion and what they're capable of. As well as your home and what type of plants you own.
For the uber-cautious, you might want to avoid any plants that have the potential to cause harm. Especially if you have a cat, as it's much harder to keep plants out of reach from them than other animals. If so, this is a list of pet-friendly house plants. You can grow them without worrying about your companion getting sick. As with all lists like this one, it's down to you to double check these plants are safe for your pet.
My top picks from this list would be the cast iron, lipstick, rhipsalis, and fern leaf cactus. They're interesting to look at and easy to care for. Unlike palms and calathea, which can be finicky and frustrating to grow. Orchids and carnivorous plants are also a great option. So long as you're up for a bit of a challenge, and would prefer a more distinctive plant collection.
If you already own house plants and are reluctant to get rid of them, there are ways you can make your home safer. Raise plants off the floor and out of reach, and move any particularly enticing plants out of sight. Consider placing high risk plants in one room and making it off-limits to your companion. If your companion won't leave them alone, it's not worth the risk. But if your pet can learn restraint, there's no reason your house plants can't thrive alongside your best friend.
