Many dog owners are concerned about the possibility of having poisonous plants in their garden.  I am always concerned about providing lists of such plants since I have no appropriate background to do so.  I was therefore pleased to have found a couple of resources for a list of such plants which should be reliable given the sources  – Cornell University & Dog’s Trust.

The key thing though is to ensure that your dogs don’t eat plants – of virtually any sort.  You can take action to avoid the possibility of your dog getting access to dangerous material, even if you do choose to grow it in your garden.

Wisteria is a poisonous plant.  When I trim mine, the dogs are confined to the house and I very carefully pick up anything that falls to the ground.  When seed pods grow, I watch the plant carefully and pick up any that I see lying around.

Other than normal “due care and attention”, the majority of issues can be resolved by training your dog not to eat your plants – and this can have other benefits.  This topic is covered in my Protecting your Dog from the Garden article.

The key thing is not to panic and ban all plants from your garden, just treat this issue as yet another thing to be considered when you are choosing plants for your garden.

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