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Make a Cat Grass Garden with Herbs Cats Can Eat

January 25, 2021 by Lindsey 16 Comments

Does your cat eat grass outside? Is your cat trying to eat plants inside your home that aren’t safe? Make your own cat grass garden with herbs and plants safe for cats.

Cat Sitting beside cat grass planter

This post may contain affiliate links where I earn a small commission from your purchase. See full disclosure for details.

Oh cats. They bring joy, cuddles, and fluffiness into our lives but they also bring… mischief.

I’ve never met a cat that isn’t curious, which I guess is why that saying has stuck when it comes to felines. But with mischievousness also sometimes comes a bit of danger.

We have two cats inside, one who likes to go outside as much as possible, and he always goes straight for patches of grass to nibble.

Why do cats eat grass?

I had a friend tell me it was because my cat’s stomach was probably upset, but he did it all the time. Surely he wasn’t sick all the time?! So, then I turned to Google. “Is it ok for cats to eat grass?”

There are a few different answers to this question, but it is most often attributed to the fact that the cat knows its stomach needs purging at times. Cats lack the necessary enzyme to break down lots grass or vegetable matter so it often makes them sick.

In turn, they expel other yucky things like hairballs or little toys that your children may have left on the floor [speaking from experience here].

Cat smelling herbs in cat grass planter

Some grass also contains different nutrients that your cat may not be getting in their food, so they’re doing their diet a favor by chowing down on the green stuff.

According to PetMD, eating grass might even help them with a sore throat!

They also may eat grass just because they like it. My observation of Frosty is that he just eats a small amount at a time, which does no harm to him and doesn’t make him sick at all.

While cats eating grass isn’t always dangerous outside, it can be inside because some plants are harmful to cats and his outside nibbling habit sometimes translates to inside, which is no bueno!

Cats smelling herbs and cat grass in small planter

That’s why it’s important to research your indoor plants and only have indoor plants that are safe for cats. Here’s a great, comprehensive list on indoor plants that are toxic to cats.

Since Frosty has a healthy nibbling grass habit, I decided to encourage it by making him his own cat grass garden.

Of course, the first thing I did was make sure all my plants were nontoxic because if I’m going to encourage him to nibble, I can’t necessarily show him which ones are safe for him and which ones aren’t.

One plant that I knew Roxy, my previous beloved cat, enjoyed was cat grass. So, I knew I would add cat grass to my cat’s very own garden!

What is Cat Grass?

Cat grass seeds in hand

Cat grass was the first thing that came to my mind when I decided to make Frosty and Bella a small garden pot inside. I know it’s super easy to grow and maintain and cats love it.

Cat grass is actually not a plant, in and of itself, but a grass mixture that is grown from seeds, such as barley, wheat, oats or rye. It’s made to be grown indoors and is perfectly safe for cats to munch.

How to Grow Cat Grass

Growing cat grass is actually so easy – even if you don’t have a green thumb! Since cat grass is meant to be grown indoors, you’ll need a container, cat grass seeds, soil, water, and a sunny spot to set it.

You can grow cat grass in a pot on it’s own, but I love flower pots with mixed herbs, so I decided to do just that for our cat grass garden.

The first step is to determine what other plants are safe for cats and it turns out – a few herbs are!

Herbs that are safe for cat consumption

More Indoor Plants Safe for Cats to Include

I created a cat grass planter with a few of our favorites in addition to Cat Grass… Rosemary and Mint.

There are a few other herbs that are safe for cats including parsley, catnip, lemongrass [but not lemongrass essential oil], and cat thyme. All of these would be excellent additions to your Cat Grass Garden!

Catnip vs Cat Grass – These are two different types of plants. When you think of catnip, you probably think of dried catnip. You can also grow a green version of catnip in an indoor cat garden pot too!

Planting cat grass in a small garden

How to Make a Cat Grass Garden

You’ll need potting soil, a container, and all your cat-safe herbs and grasses. You can plant a mixture of seeds and herb plants as they’ll mature at different times.

Cat Grass Garden

Cat Grass Garden

Materials

  • Container
  • Potting Soil
  • Seeds of plants or herbs that are safe for cats
  • Cat Grass seeds
  • Small rocks

Instructions

  1. Be sure to research what plants and herbs are safe for cats before you begin!
  2. Plant your cat-safe herbs and seeds.
  3. Place in a sunny spot.
  4. Water regularly. Do not keep soil overly moist or too dry.

Notes

Cat Grass sprouts very fast - usually in about 6 days - so it's a good idea to stagger plantings so you'll always have fresh cat grass for your cat to chew.

© Lindsey Blogs at SEBG
Category: Pets

Be sure to keep your cat garden in a well lit area with lots of water. You’ll be surprised at just how fast cat grass seeds will sprout – in about 5-6days.

You can find cat grass at Walmart, on Amazon, and a variety of stores. I found this package of cat grass seeds, also sometimes called wheat grass, in the garden center of my local Walmart, but there are also options in the pet aisles.

So, now instead of discouraging your cat from their potentially healthy habit of eating grass, create your own cat grass garden with herbs that your cat can safely eat!

Cat eating cat grass and herbs

If your cats are important members of the family, just like Frosty and Bella are to ours, you definitely treat them as such. That’s why I love making special projects for them, like this Cat Grass Garden and even more! Check out these other cat DIYs below.

Filed Under: DIY and Crafts, Pets

Comments

  1. Calvin says

    September 14, 2018 at 2:27 pm

    Great my cat loves to ruin my plants, can plant some he can have all to himself

    Reply
  2. Julie Waldron says

    September 5, 2018 at 5:20 pm

    This would be a great and fun project for my daughters & I to do for our cat. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  3. Mannik says

    July 6, 2018 at 1:01 am

    Great Tips. It gave me inspiration and motivation. I am going to make it for my cats. I am sure she will love it. My cats love to chew them. She loves catnips and tymes and mint. Love this idea and thank you for sharing such a nice tip.

    Reply
  4. Cassandra D says

    May 29, 2018 at 10:20 pm

    What a great project.

    Reply
  5. Susan P. says

    May 27, 2018 at 7:04 pm

    I would plant just the grasses that are safe for cats and keep the herbs for cooking.

    Reply
  6. Kristina G says

    May 25, 2018 at 8:54 pm

    This is such a nice project, and your cats are so cute. Would love to try this myself!

    Reply
  7. Christa Sloan says

    May 21, 2018 at 6:01 am

    Walnut litter just seems more natural to me anyways. And I always worry about cats throwing up too much, but hopefully with the right cat grass everything would be fine. 🙂

    Reply
  8. Miranda Harris says

    May 20, 2018 at 2:36 am

    Loving this idea! Thanks for sharing 🙂

    Reply
  9. Susan Gillam says

    May 16, 2018 at 1:49 am

    My cats love cat grass and fresh catnip plants. I have to start some pots of this stuff soon. It’s a great treat for them.

    Reply
  10. Dana Rodriguez says

    April 16, 2018 at 12:50 pm

    This is a great idea. I think my cats would love this!

    Reply
  11. Sarah L says

    April 15, 2018 at 1:40 am

    So did the cat grass grow? And do your cats like it?

    Reply
  12. Katie Bellamy says

    April 12, 2018 at 12:35 pm

    What a great idea! My 3 kitties would love this!

    Reply
  13. Casey Garvey says

    April 12, 2018 at 11:52 am

    My moms a cat person and has given up indoor plants because of them. I will make her this and a plant, see if the plant lives!

    Reply
  14. Mary Beth Elderton says

    April 10, 2018 at 6:43 pm

    I can’t believe I ran across this post this evening—when Hubz came home from work, he mentioned that we should find something for the cats…catnip, maybe…for a planter near the door. This is brilliant. Thank You!

    Reply
  15. Carol G says

    April 10, 2018 at 5:48 pm

    I have two cats and occasionally they eat my house plants. This could be something I can make for them.

    Reply
  16. Andrea says

    March 13, 2018 at 10:26 am

    Great tips! Thanks for sharing. We recently got a kitty and I think he’d like cat grass- he is constantly chewing on things… and maybe the walnut litter would be a more environment friendly option too? I don’t know, but definitely plan to look into it! Thanks again!

    Reply

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