Low light indoor plants safe for cats are very simple and don’t require a challenge to grow. If you are a cat parent and wish to keep plants in your home garden, we will help you know about 30 such low light non toxic plants safe for cats.
Most houseplant enthusiasts often find it difficult to find pet-friendly and low-light-tolerant plants. Keep reading as this holistic list of non-toxic plants are safe so that even if your cats take a bite, they will not be intoxicated.
Contents
- 30 Low Light Indoor Plants Safe for Cats
- 1. Fittonia
- 2. Swedish Ivy
- 3. Cast Iron Plant
- 4. Baby Rubber Plant
- 5. Ponytail Palm
- 6. Prayer Plant
- 7. Parlor Palm
- 8. Zebra Calathea
- 9. Gloxinia
- 10. Spider Plant
- 11. African Violet
- 12. Boston Fern
- 13. Staghorn Fern
- 14. Polka Dot Plant
- 15. Friendship Plant
- 16. Chinese Money Plant
- 17. Rattlesnake Plant
- 18. Areca Palm
- 19. Watermelon Peperomia
- 20. Zebra Haworthia
- 21. Purple Passion
- 22. Wax Plant
- 23. Pilea Silver Sparkle
- 24. Burro’s Tail
- 25. Pearl Plant
- 26. Bird’s Nest Fern
- 27. Venus Flytrap
- 28. Golden Marigold
- 29. Tillandsia
- 30. Mosaic Plant
- Conclusion
30 Low Light Indoor Plants Safe for Cats
Most indoor plants need indirect light to grow well. Make sure there is some dappled light coming in to ensure their proper growth. Here is a list of 30 such houseplants safe for cats.
1. Fittonia
Fittonia or Fittonia albivenis is a creeping plant with reddish veins on its foliage.
Plants with bright green leaves with white lines across can grow 10 to 12 inches tall and are perfectly safe to keep around cats.
2. Swedish Ivy
Swedish begonia or Plectranthus verticillatus is a low-maintenance houseplant with distinctive foliage. It has lilac flowers with a sweet aroma and looks gorgeous in hanging planters due to its drooping growth habit. It is a pretty common houseplant found in most US homes.
The non-toxic plant is safe to keep around pets and can grow two to three feet tall and wide. The pale purple flowers bloom in bright direct sunlight. But you can grow them indoors in indirect light too.
3. Cast Iron Plant
Cast iron plant or Aspidistra elatior is a hard-to-kill houseplant belonging to the lily family. The low-maintenance plant can tolerate low-light conditions and neglect with ease. It is non-toxic to cats and perfectly safe to keep around pets.
The height of this plant can reach up to three feet. It is a slow-grower but can survive difficult growing conditions due to which makes it a must-have for beginners.
4. Baby Rubber Plant
Baby rubber or Peperomia obtusifolia is one of the non toxic indoor plants that is perfectly safe to keep around cats. It does not need much care as its fleshy stems store water enabling the plant to stay hydrated for many days in a row.
Make sure the plant you bring at home is baby rubber and not the original rubber plant. Unlike the original rubber plant, the Baby rubber plant is non-toxic and easy to maintain.
Medium to bright indirect light works well for its growth. It is smaller in size and due to its non-fussy attitude, most gardeners love it. Due to its fleshy stems that store water, it does not have high watering needs.
5. Ponytail Palm
The Ponytail palm or Beaucarnea recurvata is an ornamental house plant that looks like a palm tree. It is a slow-growing plant with little care needs and is a must-have for plant lovers with pets. It has a long bulb-like trunk with long, curly leaves that give it a unique look. The bulbous trunk stores water.
An interesting point to know and consider about this plant is that it is neither a palm nor a tree. It is a succulent belonging to the Agave family. It is also known and called by other names such as the Bottle palm and the Elephant foot tree.
6. Prayer Plant
The Prayer plant or Maranta leuconeura is a lover of low-light conditions. It thrives in indirect light and has glossy, dark green leaves with reddish veins on them. It is a slow-growing greenery that can grow 10 to 12 inches tall and is safe to keep around cats.
Its growth pattern is horizontal and does not grow much vertically. It is a low-grower that spreads, so choose a wide pot to grow it. The beautiful leaves fold inwards at night looking like folded hands during prayer and open during the day.
There are various varieties of prayer plants such as Maranta, Calathea orbifolia, Peacock plant and the Pin-stripe Calathea.
7. Parlor Palm
Parlor palm or Chamaedorea elegans is a stunning plant perfect for both home and office settings. It has green leaves that arch downwards. Also called the Bamboo palm, it is an excellent air purifier with minimal care requirements.
If you love palm plants, parlor palm is an excellent choice of indoor plants for most palm lovers. It may, however, very easily reach a height of two to six feet indoors.
8. Zebra Calathea
Calathea zebrina or the Zebra plant belonging to the Marantaceae family is an evergreen, perennial, tropical plant native to southeastern Brazil. It gets the name Zebra Calathea due to the zebra-like stripes on its foliage.
The leaves have a foliage of dark green on the top and dark red below with the spines and veins etched in a lime green shade. In tropical climates, it is grown both indoors and outdoors but in temperate climates with temperatures below 60 degrees Fahrenheit, it is grown as a houseplant.
9. Gloxinia
Gloxinia or Sinningia speciosa is a perennial, flowering plant with big, velvety purple blooms. Many hybrid varieties are available that produce a lot of blooms in a short period. The flowers bloom for two to three months a year. The plant rarely comes back after flowering which is why it is best grown as an annual.
Its height ranges between 6 and 12 inches. Bright, indirect light works well for its growth. Scorching, direct sun rays can cause leaf burns. It thrives in moist soil conditions and warm temperatures between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit.
10. Spider Plant
Spider plant or Chlorophytum comosum is a low-maintenance plant perfect for beginner gardeners. It grows well in indirect light and is safe to keep around cats. It is a fantastic air-purifying plant to keep in corners of houses where ample space and light are an issue. It is known to remove toxins such as formaldehyde, xylene and toluene.
Spider plants need moderately moist, well-draining soil for their roots to grow well. Make sure that you won’t let the soil get too dry or even wet and water it when the top two to three inches of the soil are dry to touch.
11. African Violet
African violet or Saintpaulia is a small houseplant with fuzzy leaves that produces flowers in purple, blue and white shades. Native to the East African rainforests, it grows well in medium to bright, indirect light and warm weather conditions. They can tolerate low-light conditions too.
Grow African violets in well-draining soil mixes with high organic matter. Moisten the soil evenly once a week or so but be careful not to overwater the plant as its roots are highly susceptible to rot.
12. Boston Fern
Boston fern or Nephrolepis exaltata is one of the most easily available plants that can be kept in indoor spaces around cats.
With their dangling fronds, it is a perfect plant to grow in hanging baskets away from direct sunlight.
13. Staghorn Fern
Staghorn fern or Platycerium is a gorgeous plant with unique fronds. The flat leaves overlap each other and provide stability. It belongs to the polypod family and is a slow-grower.
The epiphytic plants have small, flat leaves and can grow up to three feet in length. This tree survives receiving small amount of light, and it is safe when consumed, in other words, it doesn’t intoxicate.
14. Polka Dot Plant
Polka dot or Hypoestes phyllostachya is a small houseplant with bright variegated leaves, it belongs to the begonia family. Most of these plants have foliage with pink as the base color and spots of green and purple all over.
It would grow up to one foot tall, if you take care of it properly by providing the right requirements, meaning a North or east-facing windows work best for its growth.
15. Friendship Plant
Friendship plant or Pilea involucrata has soft-to-touch intricately patterned foliage. It is pet-friendly and grows well in indoor spaces that receive indirect light during the day.
The low-light-loving plant can be easily propagated and is safe to keep around plants.
16. Chinese Money Plant
Chinese money tree or Pilea peperomioides is known to bring good luck and is a popular low-maintenance houseplant. Its coin or pancake-shaped leaves It is a tropical plant and thrives in warm and humid conditions.
It is even known by other names such as the Missionary plant, Lefse plant, UFO plant, and pancake plant. It does not need direct sunlight to grow well and thrives in indirect light conditions. It is, however, cold hardy, and exposure to cool temperatures enables the growth of tiny white flowers.
It needs a well-draining soil mix and a pot with drainage holes to grow well. Its roots are susceptible to rot in waterlogged conditions. Wipe down the plant leaves with water regularly to prevent dust from accumulating.
17. Rattlesnake Plant
The Rattlesnake plant or Goeppertia insignis is a tropical, perennial evergreen, indoor houseplant indigenous to Brazil. It can be slightly difficult to care for but if you provide it with the right care requirements, it will reward you with beautiful foliage. It can grow up to 24 inches tall.
Calathea rattlesnake has long, lance-shaped, green leaves that have dark green blotches and reddish-purple undersides. It is tolerant of low-light, warm, and humid conditions. Grow them in bathrooms for increased humidity. Keep a humidifier or a humidity tray around the plant to increase humidity levels.
Its striking foliage becomes brighter in bright light. you must Avoid placing the plant in direct sunlight as its leaves are prone to sunburn. You can propagate the plant through division in spring. Applying a balanced liquid fertilizer helps encourage healthy leaves.
18. Areca Palm
Areca or Dypsis lutescens is one of the most commonly available large houseplants safe for cats. Also known as the butterfly palm, it is also relatively inexpensive.
It can grow four to six feet tall with its big, stunning fronds.
19. Watermelon Peperomia
Watermelon peperomia or Peperomia argyreia gets its name due to its watermelon-like leaves .
It thrives in bright yet indirect light, in addition to warm, humid weather conditions. It is safe to place this greenery around cats as its leaves are not poisonous.
20. Zebra Haworthia
This type of Haworthia is a hardy succulent and all plants in its genus are safe to keep around cats.
It is a low-maintenance succulent that does well in both low light and full sunlight. Avoid keeping it in full sunlight if the sun is too strong.
21. Purple Passion
Purple passion or Gynura aurantiaca is a fantastic plant for bright indoor areas. It has purple speckles and thick hair on velvety leaves. It is also called the Velvet plant due to the velvety texture of its leaves.
It thrives in bright, dappled sunlight and needs evenly moist soil for proper growth. As the plant ages and matures, the deep purple color fades and does not remain as intense.
22. Wax Plant
Wax plant or Hoya carnosa looks great growing in hanging planters and is safe to keep around pets. It is also called the Porcelain flower due to its inflorescence of bright white flowers.
It looks great in hanging planters and other similar settings where the folded and curled leaves look stunning.
23. Pilea Silver Sparkle
Pilea silver sparkle or Pilea glauca is one of the best cat-friendly indoor plants for beginners in the world of indoor gardening. It thrives in moist soil and bright indirect light conditions. Its leaves look like they have been sprinkled with silver dust.
It is additionally known by other names such as Gray baby tears, Gray artillery plant and Red-stemmed pilea. Bright, indirect light and loose, airy soil mix work well for its growth. It is not cold hardy and frost-tolerant and needs warm temperatures to grow well.
24. Burro’s Tail
Burro’s-tail is scientifically known as Sedum morganianum is a creeping succulent with fleshy, blue-green leaves. Its dangling stems look gorgeous hanging in baskets. The pet-friendly houseplant is perfect for warm tropical to temperate regions.
It needs a lot of drainage in the soil mix to grow well. Its roots are highly susceptible to rot in waterlogged soil conditions. Its thick, fleshy green leaves store water for many days enabling the plant to survive without water for many days.
25. Pearl Plant
Pearl plant or Tulista pumila is an easy-to-care-for succulent with fleshy, blue-green leaves. It has pearl-like tubercles on leaves that add a pretty pattern to the plant. It is a small-sized, slow-growing succulent that works well as a desk plant and is safe to keep around pets.
It is also called Miniature aloe and Pearly dots and is perfectly safe for cats. These plants can grow up to eight inches tall and 10 inches tall in well-draining soil mixes. They can grow in low-light areas but if you want faster growth, shift them to a spot with bright, indirect light.
26. Bird’s Nest Fern
Asplenium nidus is an epiphytic plant found growing naturally on large rainforest trees. It grows in indirect light in the shade of these large trees. It has straight, spoon-shaped, green fronds that grow from a central rosette.
These ferns are slow-growing and can grow up to five feet tall. Plant them in early spring for the best growth results. It gets the name Nest fern due to the fronds emerging from fuzzy rosettes that are arranged in a circular way resembling bird’s eggs.
This non-toxic indoor plant to animals needs a lot of bright light and high humidity conditions to grow well. We would recommend not growing this plant if you live in a dry area. The best areas to keep them are the bright bathrooms near showers.
27. Venus Flytrap
Dionaea muscipula or the flytrap is a stunning carnivorous plant but is absolutely safe for cats. It is toxic to bugs and other insects but not to cats.
Keeping it in indirect light and using distilled water for watering helps keep the plant healthy.
28. Golden Marigold
Cape marigold or Garden marigold is a non-poisonous, pet-friendly plant that is loved for its bright, orange, and yellow blooms. It is an easy-to-grow, annual flowering plant that attracts many beneficial insects such as butterflies and honeybees.
There are numerous varieties available with their heights varying between six inches and four feet. If your home receives a lot of bright light, it is an excellent choice for flowering plants.
29. Tillandsia
Tillandsia or air plants are safe plants to keep around cats. These fun plants do not need soil and have negligible care requirements. The leaves look like the long tentacles of sea creatures, however, these plants are epiphytic and they love to grow on other trees in partial shade.
There are numerous varieties available such as the ones with silver-green leaves that are very drought-tolerant. Others such as Tillandsia maxima have coral leaves. Most varieties can easily survive for up to two weeks without getting water.
30. Mosaic Plant
Mosaic flower or Ludwigia sedioides is a slow-growing cat-safe plant that is native to South America. This slow-grower takes an entire season to reach the maximum size of two feet. It is an annual tropical plant that prefers warm water to grow well. These are floating greens that would grow on top of the surface of the water, if you have a pond, or even a miniature short-width aquarium, your pets are safe if they consume this plant.
If you are from an area that sees hot summers, grow this plant in full sunlight. It is safe for cats and other pets in general. The beautiful mosaic flowers come in shades of red and green with the rosettes floating on water.
Conclusion
There are a lot of low-maintenance and low-light tolerant, cat-safe plants that you can grow in your homes. You can easily keep these plants around your pets and not worry much because there won’t be consequences if they swallow them.
Now that you know all about houseplants that you can keep around cats, so the question is, which ones of these are you planning to grow in your home corners?
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