Can i grow catnip indoors

Fertilization encourages prolific vegetative growth and reduces the quality of the oils in the foliage and flowers. Regular pruning encourages bushier plants. After your catnip flowers, cut the plants back to 3 to 4 inches above the ground. Within a couple of weeks, it will grow back; this new growth will trigger a new flowering cycle.

Try to wait until your plant is at least 6-inches tall before harvesting, then use a clean pair of sharp scissors and snip off an entire stem at the surface of the growing media. Plans are easy to grow and need little care other than plenty of sunlight and watering when the soil dries out. With an M. Updated September 28, Amanda Shiffler Plant expert, M.

Skip ahead What is Catnip? Uses for Catnip How to grow in containers Supplies for planting Basic plant care for catnip Conclusion.

What is Catnip? Uses for Catnip With uses for both cats and humans, there are many reasons to add catnip plants to your indoor herb garden. Cats Catnip can be used in a couple of different ways for cats. Give it in small amounts, too much can make your kitty cranky or nauseous. Avoid giving it to young cats or senior cats.

Avoid if you are scheduled for surgery within a couple of weeks as it may alter how you react to anesthesia. How to grow in containers As a member of the mint family, catnip is also known for its aggressive growth and ability to quickly take over a garden or growing space. Plants can either be started from seed or from stem cuttings taken off another plant. Fill containers with pre-moistened growing media. Keep growing media moist but not soggy. When the catnip plant foliage is rubbed or crushed, the essential oil is released, and the aroma acts as a beacon to all cats in the vicinity — a little catnip fever!

Inhaling the smell causes cats to go nutty, running around the area like lunatics. When the catnip is eaten, though, the effect is quite the opposite. After eating catnip, cats generally roll around, mellow out, and often completely zone out.

Some cats, however, have the opposite reaction and get wild or aggressive. Not all cats react to catnip.

Monitor your cats the first time they have catnip to see where they fall on the catnip sensitivity spectrum. The effects of catnip generally last between hours, which the first minutes being the most intense. Some kitties have been known to overindulge, though it is rare.

Catnip grows well on a bright, sunny windowsill. Growing catnip indoors requires minimal care or effort, making it a great houseplant for even the most black-thumb beginning gardener. It is an easy addition to any herb garden, indoors or outdoors. This guide will show you how growing catnip will make all the felines in your home your best buddies. The growing season for catnip is the same indoors and out. Cats react to fresh and dried catnip. You can pull leaves directly off the plant for your furry friend.

Crush the leaves between your fingers to release the smell the felines love. Catnip is also fantastic dried. Use a dehydrator, or line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it out in the full sun to dry naturally. If you use the outdoor drying method, be aware you might suddenly have an influx of neighborhood kitties in your yard!

Store dried catnip in an airtight container in a cool, dry location. Or, keep it in the freezer to maintain maximum potency. The herb will lose its effectiveness over time. And, that is why you should always have plants growing to renew the supply of catnip in your home.

One plant can be the start of a whole garden of catnip N epeta cataria plants. Catmint is easily propagated from stem cuttings as well as seeds. Your feline friends say this is a fantastic idea! Actually, a kitchen garden of catnip is what your cat really requests. Tea — Catnip is excellent brewed in a teapot. Fresh or dried leaves are both great.

Salad — Use fresh catnip leaves in a green salad for a unique flavor addition. There are 4 ways to do this. Each explained below:. Catnip seeds grow best when they are Stratified. Soaking them for 12 to 24 hours improves germination. Many gardeners recommend freezing the seeds overnight before soaking in water, you can try that as well. They will germinate in 5 to 20 days. Growing catnip from cuttings is a quick way to multiply it during the growing season. Cut 4 to 6 inches long stems below the leaf node and plant them in rich and moist potting soil.

If you like, dip cut ends in a rooting hormone to improve the success rate. By layering flexible and young catnip stems, you can start new plants in no time. The roots easily grow from the buried stem nodes. Make sure that you are using a porous potting soil and keeping the plant at a bright and warm location. Spring and fall are the best seasons to follow this technique. To understand better, check out this University of Florida article. For this, remove your plant from the soil and shake off excess dirt.

Divide the rootball into one or two clean sections, using a sharp tool. Settle the multiplied plants in separate pots. The most common and widely grown catnip variety is Nepeta Cataria , which is also known as the True or Common Catnip. Nepeta genus has other species as well, but the three main popular types of catnip are:. Greek catnip grows slightly tall. It can be up to 4 feet high. However, in pots, you can easily manage the size. This species has fragrant leaves that smell like a combination of camphor and mint.

Your biggest hurdle to growing catnip Nepeta cataria indoors might not be low light levels, cold air, or lack of consistent watering. Your biggest hurdle might be your cat. Catnip , a perennial favorite of all things feline, is a relative of mint and lemon balm, which means it's not difficult to grow indoors. Outdoors, catnip known to spread easily, growing into jumbled patches that attract cats from miles around.

Indoors, you can successfully grow it on a sunny windowsill, providing you give it enough water and remember to pinch out the flowers to encourage leaf growth. Aside from cats, the biggest challenge you'll likely face is a lack of sufficient sunlight, which causes spindly and leggy plants.

While many people report that they like the fragrant, herbal smell of catnip, some people find that it has a vaguely skunky odor that is off-putting. Although catnip is a perennial plant , it's probably easier to grow them indoors for only a single growing season, and replace them with smaller and more manageable specimens the following year. While catnip is unlikely to seriously harm your cat, in large quantities it has been known to cause vomiting and diarrhea and can overstimulate your cat's central nervous system to the point that it could harm itself.

So be careful to grow in a cat-proof area. Catnip belongs to the same family as mint Lamiaceae and is part of the Nepeta genus. The true catnip plant is Nepeta cataria. There are other Nepata species, but none seem to have the same near-magical appeal to cats. Catnip is not an especially difficult plant to grow indoors. It thrives on a sunny location in well-drained potting soil.

If it goes into flower, snip off the flower buds to encourage stronger leaf growth. Catnip grown indoors will not have the same potency as catnip grown outdoors, but your cats will still immensely enjoy it. Catnip is not particularly picky about outdoor sunlight, but indoors it must receive as much direct sunlight as possible, up to five hours a day of strong sunlight on a bright windowsill.

Too little sunlight produces leggy and spindly growth. Catnip grows best at temperatures between 55 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit and tends to perform poorly in hot, humid environments.