Pets
Flowers and Cats: Which Garden Flowers Are Toxic to Cats
Lilies and the flowers that only share their name, the other flowers cat owners ask about, and every flowering plant listed as non-toxic or as toxic to cats.
This guide starts with lilies, and with the flowers that only share their name, then answers the other flowers cat owners ask about, then lists every flowering plant in our library listed as non-toxic to cats and every one listed as toxic to them. Every answer is the plant's own listing, read for every plant in our library, with the institution behind it named and linked.
Which flowers are toxic to cats?
In our library, 114 kinds of flowering plant, 648 plants counting every variety, are listed as toxic to cats by at least one named authority, and sixteen kinds are listed as non-toxic to cats. The questions come first below, then both lists in full.
Listed as toxic to cats by the authority named on each plant's page.
Are lilies toxic to cats?
The word lily covers several different plants. Here is each one a gardener is likely to grow, with its own listing.
Asiatic LilyLilium
Listed as toxic to dogs by University of Vermont Extension. Another source we check lists it as non-toxic; where sources disagree, the warning is shown.
Listed as toxic to cats by NC State Extension, University of Vermont Extension, Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
All 5 plants in this group
DaylilyHemerocallis
Listed as toxic to dogs by University of Florida IFAS Extension. Another source we check lists it as non-toxic; where sources disagree, the warning is shown.
Listed as toxic to cats by NC State Extension, University of Florida IFAS Extension, Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
All 19 plants in this group
Calla LilyZantedeschia
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension and Royal Horticultural Society.
All 8 plants in this group
Peruvian LilyAlstroemeria
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Pet Poison Helpline. Another source we check lists it as non-toxic; where sources disagree, the warning is shown.
All 2 plants in this group
Lily of the ValleyConvallaria majalis
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension, Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
Canna LilyCanna
No toxic listing found for dogs and cats in the sources we check.
All 12 plants in this group
Toad LilyTricyrtis
No toxic listing found for dogs and cats in the sources we check.
Only the first is a true lily, genus Lilium; the others share the name, not the genus, and each carries its own listing above.
The flowers cat owners ask about most
Each answer below is the plant's own listing, for dogs and cats both, with how many of the library's varieties read the same for cats.
Are tulips toxic to cats?
TulipTulipa
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension and Pet Poison Helpline.
All 21 plants in this group
Are roses toxic to cats?
Roses are checked plant by plant like everything else here, and until a rose has been checked it carries no answer either way; its page will say the day that changes.
Are hydrangeas toxic to cats?
Bigleaf HydrangeaHydrangea macrophylla
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension, Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
All 24 plants in this group
Is lavender toxic to cats?
LavenderLavandula
Listed as toxic to dogs by NC State Extension and University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Listed as toxic to cats by NC State Extension.
6 of the 12 plants in this group: Lavender, Hidcote, Hidcote Pink, Munstead, Nana Alba, Royal Velvet
Are mums toxic to cats?
Garden MumChrysanthemum
Listed as toxic to dogs by NC State Extension and Pet Poison Helpline.
Listed as toxic to cats by NC State Extension.
All 15 plants in this group
Are peonies toxic to cats?
PeonyPaeonia
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension, Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
All 16 plants in this group
Are daisies toxic to cats?
Shasta DaisyLeucanthemum
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 8 plants in this group
Gerbera DaisyGerbera jamesonii
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 7 plants in this group
Marguerite DaisyArgyranthemum
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 5 plants in this group
African DaisyOsteospermum
No toxic listing found for dogs and cats in the sources we check.
All 6 plants in this group
Daisy is a flower shape, not one plant: the four above are four different plants, and each carries its own listing.
Are sunflowers toxic to cats?
SunflowerHelianthus annuus
No toxic listing found for dogs and cats in the sources we check.
All 12 plants in this group
No toxic listing found means none of the sources we check lists sunflowers either way; it is not a clearance.
Are marigolds toxic to cats?
These are Tagetes, the summer bedding marigolds. Calendula, called pot marigold, is a different plant with its own listing.
Flowering plants listed as non-toxic to cats
Every flowering plant in our library listed as non-toxic to cats, sorted by type. Where only some varieties of a plant carry the listing, the row names them.
Perennials
Coreopsis 'Crème Brûlée'Coreopsis verticillata 'Crème Brûlée'
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
4 of the 12 plants in this group: Crème Brûlée, Early Sunrise, Moonbeam, Zagreb
Creeping PhloxPhlox subulata
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
10 of the 11 plants in this group: Creeping Phlox, Amazing Grace, Candy Stripe, Drummond's Pink, Emerald Blue, Emerald Pink, Purple Beauty, Red Wings, Scarlet Flame, White Delight
Annuals
Apricot CalendulaCalendula officinalis
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
4 of the 5 plants in this group: Apricot Calendula, Indian Prince, Ivory Princess, Yellow Calendula
CleomeCleome hassleriana
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 5 plants in this group
Gerbera DaisyGerbera jamesonii
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 7 plants in this group
Sweet AlyssumLobularia maritima
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
3 of the 6 plants in this group: Sweet Alyssum, Rosie O'Day, Royal Carpet
ZinniaZinnia elegans
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 14 plants in this group
Shrubs
CamelliaCamellia japonica
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
8 of the 13 plants in this group: Camellia, Alba Plena, April Rose, Debutante, Kramer's Supreme, Nuccio's Pearl, Pink Perfection, Professor Sargent
ForsythiaForsythia
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
All 7 plants in this group
Slender DeutziaDeutzia gracilis
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
3 of the 4 plants in this group: Slender Deutzia, Chardonnay Pearls Deutzia, Nikko Deutzia
Trees
Mountain StewartiaStewartia ovata
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
1 of the 4 plants in this group: Mountain Stewartia
Royal Star MagnoliaMagnolia stellata 'Royal Star'
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
2 of the 13 plants in this group: Royal Star Magnolia, Star Magnolia
Tulip TreeLiriodendron tulipifera
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
Climbers
JasmineJasminum officinale
Not yet checked for dogs.
Listed as non-toxic to cats by NC State Extension.
2 of the 5 plants in this group: Jasmine, Winter Jasmine
Herbs
RosemarySalvia rosmarinus
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
SageSalvia officinalis
Listed as non-toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension.
Every flowering plant listed as toxic to cats
The full list, one growth habit at a time. A chip names a plant, or a group of varieties, and opens a plant page where the listing is named and linked. When only some of a group's varieties carry the listing, the chip names the group and says how many.
Bulbs
22 kinds, 165 plants counting every variety
Perennials
33 kinds, 174 plants counting every variety
Annuals
18 kinds, 105 plants counting every variety
Shrubs
23 kinds, 129 plants counting every variety
Climbers
13 kinds, 45 plants counting every variety
For flowering plants with no toxic listing found for cats, our plant library's pet filter lists every one; it keeps the plants listed as non-toxic too, and leaves out the ones listed as toxic and the ones not yet checked.
What should I do if my cat eats a flower on this list?
Call your veterinarian or a pet poison helpline, and have the plant's name ready; its plant page, a label or a photo all help. The number for one helpline that answers around the clock is in the box near the top of this page.
Do these answers cover cut flowers in a vase?
They are answers about the plant, so a bouquet of a plant listed as toxic to cats carries the same listing as the plant in the ground. Flowers in a mixed bouquet are worth identifying one by one.
Why do dogs and cats sometimes read differently?
Because each animal is listed on its own. A plant can be listed for cats and not yet checked for dogs, and its lines say exactly that.
Sources for these listings
Every plant on this page is looked up in NC State Extension, Royal Horticultural Society and Pet Poison Helpline, the sources we check. Each plant's own line names the institution that lists it and links that institution's page for the plant. On this page:
- NC State Extensionnamed for 27 plants
- Pet Poison Helplinenamed for 9 plants
- Royal Horticultural Societynamed for 6 plants
- U.S. Food and Drug Administrationnamed for 1 plant
- University of California Agriculture and Natural Resourcesnamed for 1 plant
- University of Florida IFAS Extensionnamed for 1 plant
- University of Vermont Extensionnamed for 1 plant
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline. What each answer means, and what it does not: how the listings are read.
Design a garden with these plants
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