Catnip

Planting catnip

Sow indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost, direct sow in spring, or plant divisions. Seed needs light; press it into the surface.

Planting details

• Spacing: 18 to 24 inches; plants sprawl as they mature
• Spreads by seed and by stems that root where they touch soil
• A clump cage or pot keeps neighborhood cats from flattening it

Growing requirements

Catnip grows almost anywhere with sun and drainage, and lean soil keeps it compact. It is a mint relative, so treat it like one: it spreads when it is happy.

Harvesting and care

Shear the plant back by a third after the first bloom for a fresh flush. Dry leafy stems upside down in small bunches for tea or cat toys.

Common mistakes

• Rich, moist soil, which produces floppy, weak growth
• Letting every bloom go to seed, which spreads it through the garden
• Planting it unprotected if you want to keep it; cats roll on young plants flat

Companion plants

Give catnip a border edge or its own container rather than the middle of a tidy bed, where it will seed and sprawl into neighbors.