A to Z of Growing Catnip Indoors

Jul 06, 2021by Samin Rizvi

Growing Catnip Indoors is possible, and with the help of these catnip plant care tips, you can grow it year-round in your home.

Catnip is a mint family herb. It’s known for attracting cats like a magician. This gray-green foliage plant releases a chemical, when rubbed, which works as a cat attractant. Catnip is also used to flavor salads, teas, and meat dishes. Overall, it’s a useful herb, and you can also grow it as a houseplant.

Botanical name: Nepeta Cataria

Plant Type: Herbaceous Perennial

What’s with the Cats?

Cats don’t bother the catnip plant much, as long as you are not crushing its leaves. Crushing the leaves releases the aroma of essential oil, which attracts cats to the plant, making them rub against it, they may chew it as well. If you’re growing catnip for culinary purpose, keep this plant out of reach from your feline.

A Fact: According to several studies, 70 to 80% of cats feel the euphoric effect from catnip.

Propagating Catnip

Propagating catnip is a quick way to multiply this amazing herb. There are 4 ways to do this. Each explained below:

Seeds

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. After the stratifying process, sow seeds 1/4 inch deep in a seed mix. They will germinate in 5 to 20 days.

A Tip: Instead of growing catnip from seeds, it’s better to buy a couple of transplants from a nearby nursery.

Cuttings

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.

Layering

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.

Division

If you’ve got a lush and established catnip plant, multiply it through division. 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.

Types of Catnip

1. Greek Catnip (Nepeta parnassica)

Height & Spread: 18-24 inches & 12-24 inches

Greek catnip grows slightly tall. It can be up to 4 feet high. However, in pots, you can easily manage the size.

2. Camphor Catnip (Nepeta camphorata)

Height & Spread: 12-18 inches tall and wide

This species has fragrant leaves that smell like a combination of camphor and mint. You can grow it in a small pot.

3. Lemon Catnip (Nepeta citriodora)

Height & Spread: 12-18 inches & 12-24 inches

With its lemon-scented leaves, this variety of catnip will attract you more than your cats. It’s great for making aromatic.

Choosing a Container

Select a container that is a minimum of 8 inches deep and wide. This will provide enough room for the plant to grow and thrive. Once the plant outgrows the current pot, repot it to one or two sizes bigger pot (10 to 12 inches). During repotting, divide its rootball into two sections and plant them into separate pots to have more catnips.

Quick Tips

If you’re growing this herb for your furry friend, select a wider pot, and grow several plants together.
Avoid using planters made from breakable materials, i.e., clay pots.

Growing Catnip with Other Plants

You can also grow catnip with other herbs that have similar growing requirements like hyssop, mint, sorrel, and nasturtium. However, do bear in mind that the catnip roots spread rapidly, crowding out neighboring plants.

Keep Growing New Catnip Plants

Since you’re growing catnip indoors, it can’t live like a perennial plant unless you provide proper care and ample sunlight. You can expect it to lose vigorousness sooner or later. You can also expect it to be in manageable height under one foot. So, be ready to replace the plant with a new one. As soon as you see it slowing down, multiply it by means of cuttings.

Requirements for Growing Catnip Indoors

Position

Unlike your other houseplants, catnip loves the sun. If you’ve got a windowsill that receives at least 4-5 hours of direct sunlight, then it’ll thrive well! Make sure that the plant is not overexposed to the harsh, direct sunlight, especially in hot summer afternoons.

Using Grow Lights

Supplement the sunlight with artificial grow lights. Either use T5 fluorescent plant grow light, or 40W T12 plant grow fluorescent tube with a reflector. Suspend the grow light fixture over the plant, ensuring it’s at least 12 inches above it. Make sure that you are exposing the plants for at least 10-12 hours each day.

Soil

Use any well-draining and loamy potting medium, you use for other herbs. To enrich the soil, add 20 percent aged manure or compost to the soil.

Watering

Water a new catnip plant every 4 to 7 days in its first two or three weeks while it’s establishing in the pot. After that, do prudent watering, only and only when the topsoil seems slightly, usually in every 7 to 12 days interval, depending on growing conditions.

Catnip Plant Care Indoors

Feeding

It’s better to fertilize less, rather than so often, to save the plant from overfertilization. Balanced liquid fertilizer like 20-20-20 should do the work.