Cat safe filter plants

[TetraKing101]

For those of you that don’t know I have two furry friends in my house that like to explore around my fish tanks. The situation I have is that I’m looking for plants to put in my HOB’s to remove some nitrates but every time I find a new plant that would work it seams it can be harmful to my cats (pothos, lucky bamboo) i would really like some filter plants but I’m not going to risk there health over some plants. Maybe some of you cat owners can help me out a give me some suggestions that would work for my particular situation

 

[Salem]

Honestly you can put just about any plant into the filter and it will help with nitrates. I've seen a few people actually grow cat grass and various herbs out of their tanks.

 

[TetraKing101]

Is there any plants you would recommend that are fairly easy to find

 

[ForceTen]

I like this idea and what to learn more.
I am especially interested in the clear cube like structures that are used like an HOB.
Now that I have room across the back of my 40 Gallon breeder I want to try growing plants outside of the tank.
The "herb" idea really got my attention.

I hope someone is familiar with these HO cubes I think are used in conjunction with a water pump? I would love to find something that requires no pump.

When I was a kid, we did not have power filters. We had HOB filters that used gravity to bring water into the filter. They were hard to start as you had to hold your finger over the tube at the filter end to start the gravity flow.

Comon guys and girls. I'm only 63, I know someone has to remember these gravity powered HOB filters?????

 

[Salem]

Basil, mint, and dill are pretty good and you can find them as seeds pretty easily. As for plants that you can buy that are already grown spider plants, and boston ferns are listed as non-toxic to cats. Wandering jewel has some conflicting information on whether or not its toxic but I have kept it with my extremely 'curious' cat. She once ate almost an entire plant and all it did was make her puke about half an hour later.

 

[oldsalt777]

For those of you that don’t know I have two furry friends in my house that like to explore around my fish tanks. The situation I have is that I’m looking for plants to put in my HOB’s to remove some nitrates but every time I find a new plant that would work it seams it can be harmful to my cats (pothos, lucky bamboo) i would really like some filter plants but I’m not going to risk there health over some plants. Maybe some of you cat owners can help me out a give me some suggestions that would work for my particular situation

Hello Tetra...

Small house plants won't remove much in the way of nitrates. Their root system is too small to make a difference. The best thing for your nitrate issue is larger, more regular water changes. You can also introduce floating plants to use nitrates. Anacharis, Dwarf water lettuce, Hornwort, Duckweed and Pennywort are just a few. We have several cats in our house and I use house plants to control nitrogen in some of my tanks. Our cats have never shown an interest in the tanks, let alone the plants. They are interested in our parakeets, though.

Old

 

[PShen]

You can try growing catnip. Catnip can definitely be rooted in water, but I am not sure how long they can stay in it. It also depends on your cat. If you have a really mouthy kitty, keeping pots of catnip around will help draw them away from other plants. I have pothos in both my tank and in pots, lucky bamboo too, however my kitty pays no attention to them. She goes straight to the cat nip. I keep large pots of it in various spots in my home. I also have spider plants, and even though those are non-toxic, the grass-like leaves will draw cats to them AND they will make your kitty puke if eaten. You can easily get those pots of cat nip at places like petco. They are easily re-potted.

 

[TetraKing101]

Hello Tetra...

Small house plants won't remove much in the way of nitrates. Their root system is too small to make a difference. The best thing for your nitrate issue is larger, more regular water changes. You can also introduce floating plants to use nitrates. Anacharis, Dwarf water lettuce, Hornwort, Duckweed and Pennywort are just a few. We have several cats in our house and I use house plants to control nitrogen in some of my tanks. Our cats have never shown an interest in the tanks, let alone the plants. They are interested in our parakeets, though.

Old

I not worried about my nitrates I was just wanting to experiment with different plants and watch them grow as something fun to do. I guess it might of sounded like that in the original post but it’s mostly for fun

 

[TetraKing101]

You can try growing catnip. Catnip can definitely be rooted in water, but I am not sure how long they can stay in it. It also depends on your cat. If you have a really mouthy kitty, keeping pots of catnip around will help draw them away from other plants. I have pothos in both my tank and in pots, lucky bamboo too, however my kitty pays no attention to them. She goes straight to the cat nip. I keep large pots of it in various spots in my home. I also have spider plants, and even though those are non-toxic, the grass-like leaves will draw cats to them AND they will make your kitty puke if eaten. You can easily get those pots of cat nip at places like petco. They are easily re-potted.

Maybe I will try out the catnip idea the tank is in a room but my cats have found out how to open it so that’s why I was worried. Should I look for some seeds or just by the already grown plant and stick it in. Thanks for the info on the spider plant as one of my cats have a super sensitive stomach so I guess that wouldn’t work

 

[PShen]

Maybe I will try out the catnip idea the tank is in a room but my cats have found out how to open it so that’s why I was worried. Should I look for some seeds or just by the already grown plant and stick it in. Thanks for the info on the spider plant as one of my cats have a super sensitive stomach so I guess that wouldn’t work

Smart kitties you have! haha I've grown catnip both ways. It's always easier just to get one that is already grown. The ones started at petco or petsmart are really easy. You just have to re-pot them in a new bigger pot with potting soil. They will really flourish then. You could then take some cuttings of that and place them in your tank and give it a go, but then you are REALLY drawing your kitties to your tank. Maybe just put a big pot of it NEAR your tank so that they don't try and get around the top of your tank. Pothos are just soo easy to have in a tank. I would experiment and see if you cats are attracted to them. They would have to ingest a lot to be really harmful. A little nip won't be too terrible. Pothos really have that thick, waxy leaf that they are not so inviting to cats. But then again, just depends on the kitty. good luck!

 

[TetraKing101]

Smart kitties you have! haha I've grown catnip both ways. It's always easier just to get one that is already grown. The ones started at petco or petsmart are really easy. You just have to re-pot them in a new bigger pot with potting soil. They will really flourish then. You could then take some cuttings of that and place them in your tank and give it a go, but then you are REALLY drawing your kitties to your tank. Maybe just put a big pot of it NEAR your tank so that they don't try and get around the top of your tank. Pothos are just soo easy to have in a tank. I would experiment and see if you cats are attracted to them. They would have to ingest a lot to be really harmful. A little nip won't be too terrible. Pothos really have that thick, waxy leaf that they are not so inviting to cats. But then again, just depends on the kitty. good luck!

Thanks I’ll do a little experimenting. Yep there a handful but I’m not so worried about them getting into the cat nip in the filter. Maybe I’ll try putting a pot of cat nip by it they do love there cat nip so it might work. Thanks everyone for the suggestions and help

 

[oldsalt777]

I not worried about my nitrates I was just wanting to experiment with different plants and watch them grow as something fun to do. I guess it might of sounded like that in the original post but it’s mostly for fun

Tetra...

If you want a house plant that grows well in a fish tank, get some Chinese evergreen. I have some photos of the plant that I can post.

Old

 

[TetraKing101]

Tetra...

If you want a house plant that grows well in a fish tank, get some Chinese evergreen. I have some photos of the plant that I can post.

Old

Thanks for the suggestion but I looked it up and it’s not safe my cats so I don’t think it would work out

 

[oldsalt777]

Thanks for the suggestion but I looked it up and it’s not safe my cats so I don’t think it would work out

Hello again...

Yes. I read this too several years ago. But, we have 8 cats and I've used these plants in my tanks to control nitrates for more than 15 years with no problems. I'm not sure how this statement was researched. Anyway, the plant seems harmless.

Old

 

[TetraKing101]

Hello again...

Yes. I read this too several years ago. But, we have 8 cats and I've used these plants in my tanks to control nitrates for more than 15 years with no problems. I'm not sure how this statement was researched. Anyway, the plant seems harmless.

Old

Chinese Evergreen

Found it on this link my cats really like to munch on plants so I can’t risk it

 

[DuaneV]

Here's the thing: Most houseplants you buy at a greenhouse are harmful to cats. There are a lot of safe plants though, and some that you can find easily (and may already have in your house) are:

Spiderplants
African Violet
Babies Breath
Gloxinia
Bromeliad
Mosaic Plants
Boston Ferns
Calathia
Orchids
Camas

There are TONS of others too so do some googling.

 

[TetraKing101]

Here's the thing: Most houseplants you buy at a greenhouse are harmful to cats. There are a lot of safe plants though, and some that you can find easily (and may already have in your house) are:

Spiderplants
African Violet
Babies Breath
Gloxinia
Bromeliad
Mosaic Plants
Boston Ferns
Calathia
Orchids
Camas

There are TONS of others too so do some googling.

Thanks I’ll have to look into some of these

 

[Kysarkel000]

What about just some cat grass? (Rye, wheat, barley, etc) you could put it in an old sock with growing medium and then into the HOB