Question
I have 3 cats and I want to get a couple of large houseplants for my bedroom.  I keep getting conflicting information about whether or not the Umbrella tree/plant is poisonous to cats. According to the ASPCA, Schefflera IS poisonous, but the Umbrella "plant" is not. I'm confused. Can you please help me?

Answer
Heather,

The umbrella plant that is not poisonous is not a housplant. It is a flowering plant grown in fields also known as buckwheat.

The plants that are commonly knowns as scheffleras are mildly poisonous. While this plant does contain potentially toxic substances, the most common effects seen are mild vomiting and diarrhea. Then most important thing for you is the plant tastes bad to a cat because of the oxalic acid in the leaves so the cat is not going to eat much and it will quickly learn to stay away from that plant. Good luck.

Darlene