care and pet safety
Guidance, not a guarantee.
We want your plants to thrive and your pets to stay safe. That means being honest about what a photo can tell us, and what it cannot.
How to read a Fernfriend reading
- Every identification and sick-leaf reading is a likely reading, shown with a confidence between 0 and 100 percent. Treat it as a well-informed second opinion.
- Act sensibly and gently. Our recovery steps favor changes that are safe even if the reading is wrong: pause watering, check roots, adjust light.
- Look-alikes and other possibilities are shown whenever a photo is ambiguous. You confirm the plant before anything is saved.
- For a precious, rare, or valuable plant, confirm with a local nursery before anything drastic like heavy pruning or a full repot.
Our pet-safety stance
Pet-toxicity flags appear on every plant that needs one, at the top of the care card, never buried. Statuses follow the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists: toxic, mildly toxic, listed as pet-safe, or not confirmed. When we are not sure, we say so rather than guess safe.
If your cat or dog has chewed a plant, call your veterinarian or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 (a fee may apply). Fernfriend is not a substitute for a vet.
Our care library at a glance
These hand-checked entries back the “I know what it is” option and our sample readings.
Golden pothos
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 7 to 10 days, medium light
Fiddle-leaf fig
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 8 to 12 days, bright indirect light
Heartleaf philodendron
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 7 to 10 days, medium light
Snake plant
Mildly toxic to cats and dogs
every 2 to 3 weeks, any light
ZZ plant
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 2 to 3 weeks, low to medium light
Spider plant
Listed as pet-safe
every 6 to 9 days, medium light
Calathea (prayer plant family)
Listed as pet-safe
every 5 to 8 days, medium light, humid
Boston fern
Listed as pet-safe
every 3 to 5 days, keep damp
Peace lily
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 5 to 9 days, medium light
Rubber plant
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 8 to 14 days, bright indirect light
Chinese money plant
Listed as pet-safe
every 7 to 10 days, bright indirect light
String of pearls
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 12 to 20 days, bright light
Parlor palm
Listed as pet-safe
every 7 to 10 days, low light is fine
Jade plant
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 2 to 3 weeks, sunny window
Baby rubber plant
Listed as pet-safe
every 9 to 14 days, medium light
Swiss cheese plant
Toxic to cats and dogs
every 7 to 12 days, bright indirect light