Plants & Pets

I have six dogs, hundreds of plants, and nobody has tried to turn the nursery into a salad bar yet. Most dogs seem far more interested in rabbits, squirrels, and whatever mysterious smell appeared overnight than they are in eating shrubs. That said, every dog is different. Some dogs ignore plants their entire lives. Others may wake up one morning and decide that today is the day they sample the landscaping.

High Concern

Plant	Problem Parts	Why It’s Listed
Chokecherry	Leaves, twigs, pits	Can be toxic if consumed, especially by livestock.
Schubert Chokecherry	Leaves, twigs, pits	Same concerns as chokecherry.
American Plum	Leaves, twigs, pits	Leaves and pits should not be consumed.
Prairie Red Plum	Leaves, twigs, pits	Leaves and pits should not be consumed.
Bounty Plum	Leaves, twigs, pits	Leaves and pits should not be consumed.
Sand Cherry	Leaves, twigs, pits	Related to cherries and plums.
Nanking Cherry	Leaves, twigs, pits	Related to cherries and plums.
Black Cherry	Leaves, twigs, pits	Similar concerns to other cherries.
Apricot	Leaves, twigs, pits	Similar concerns to plums and cherries.
Russian Almond	Leaves, stems, pits	Related to the plum/cherry family.

Moderate Concern

Plant	Problem Parts	Why It’s Listed
Elderberry	Leaves, stems, unripe berries	Ripe berries are commonly used; other parts should not be eaten.
Hydrangeas (all varieties)	Leaves and flower buds	May cause stomach upset if consumed.
False Indigo	Entire plant	Not considered edible for pets or livestock.
Crabapples	Seeds and pits	Fruit flesh is generally not the concern.
Viburnum	Berries	Large quantities may cause stomach upset.
Honeysuckles	Berries	Some species can cause stomach upset.
Silverberry	Berries and foliage	May cause digestive upset if consumed.

Low Concern

Plant Group	Notes
Lilacs	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Forsythia	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Weigelas	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Spireas	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Ninebark	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Mock Orange	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Dogwoods	Generally considered pet-friendly.
Juneberries (Serviceberries)	Edible fruit.
Aronia (Chokeberry)	Edible fruit.
Raspberries	Edible fruit.
Haskaps	Edible fruit.
Currants	Generally considered low concern.
Hazelnuts	Generally considered low concern.
Lindens	Generally considered low concern.
Maples	Generally considered low concern.
Willows	Generally considered low concern.
Cottonwoods	Generally considered low concern.
Aspen & Birch	Generally considered low concern.
Roses	Generally considered low concern.
Magnolias	Generally considered low concern.
Sumacs (Smooth & Skunkbush)	Not related to poison sumac.
Caragana	Generally considered low concern.
Buffaloberry	Generally considered low concern.

General Table

Plant Group	Concern Level	Parts of Concern

Cherries, Plums & Apricots

High

Leaves, twigs, pits

Hydrangeas

Moderate

Leaves, flower buds

Elderberries

Moderate

Leaves, stems, unripe berries

False Indigo

Moderate

Entire plant

Crabapples

Low-Moderate

Seeds

Most other nursery plants

Low

Generally not a significant concern

Final Thoughts

Most landscape plants fall somewhere between “completely edible” and “deadly poison.” In reality, serious problems are uncommon because most pets simply don’t eat enough plant material to cause trouble. If your dog, cat, horse, goat, or llama has a habit of sampling the landscaping, please research any plant carefully before bringing it home.

And if your Labrador has already eaten a garden hose, half a tennis ball, and an entire sandwich wrapper, you probably already know that every animal has its own ideas about what’s edible.

This page is intended as a general guide, not veterinary advice. Always research plants carefully if you have pets or livestock that are known chewers, grazers, or professional troublemakers.