Catnip
Nepeta cataria · Perennial
A vigorous mint-family perennial. Contains nepetalactone, which mimics a feline pheromone: a sedative if eaten, a stimulant if sniffed.
What it needs indoors
- Light
- Full sun5+ hours direct sun
- Water
- Let it dry outAllow to dry slightly between waterings
- Temperature
- 60–75°F
- Growing medium
- Average, well-draining mix
- Native range
- Dry roadsides and waste ground across Europe and Asia
- Difficulty
- Beginner
What usually goes wrong
Plant flattened, chewed, pot on its side
The cat. Nepetalactone works through scent, so the plant does not need to be eaten to be destroyed.
Fix: Grow it somewhere the animal physically cannot get to, or cover the pot with a wire cloche. Cut and dry sprigs to hand out rather than surrendering the whole plant.
Soft sprawling growth that flops under its own weight
Too much water and too much feed. Catnip is a roadside coloniser and lean conditions are what keep it compact.
Fix: Let it dry out between waterings, skip fertiliser altogether, and cut it back by half. What comes back will be stiffer.
Goes straggly and stops making leaf once it flowers
Flowering closes the leafy phase, and seedlings will turn up in every pot within reach afterwards.
Fix: Shear the plant back by a third to a half as the flower spikes appear. Take them off before the seed sets unless you want catnip everywhere.
