Catnip Plant Varieties: Cultivating Various Nepeta Species

Catnip Plant Varieties: Cultivating Various Nepeta Species

Catnip Plant Varieties: Cultivating Various Nepeta Species: Catnip comes from the mint family and is popular among feline friends. Catnip comes in various varieties, all of which are easy to grow, vigorous, and appealing.

In case you were wondering, these plants will attract your feline friends. Crushing the leaves releases nepetalactone, an ecstatic chemical for cats.

Contact with the plant makes the cat happy and provides several photo opportunities and a general sense of well-being as you watch “Fluffy” frolic.

Catnip Varieties Nepeta cataria, generally known as actual catnip, is the most prevalent form of catnip.

There are other Nepeta species, each with its unique blossom colour and aroma.

These catnip plants are native to Europe and Asia but have become naturalized in some regions of North America.

Catnip and its cousin, catmint, have interbred, resulting in several offshoots of the original type.

There are five popular species, which are as follows:

True catmint (Nepeta cataria) – grows up to 1 foot tall and has white to purple blooms.

Tall Greek catmint (Nepeta parnassica)- Pale pink blossoms and a height of 112 feet (1.5 m).

Camphor catmint (Nepeta camphorata)- 3 feet (1.5 m) tall with white flowers with purple markings.

Lemon catmint (Nepeta citriodora)- A plant with white and purple flowers growing about 1 metre tall.

Persian catmint (Nepeta mussinii)-Lavender flowers and a 15-inch height (38 cm).

Most catnip varieties feature grey-green, heart-shaped leaves with fine hairs. All bear the mint family’s traditional square stem.

There are various other Nepeta species for daring gardeners or cat lovers.

Giant catmint can grow to be over 3 feet tall.

The flowers have a purplish blue colour and various variations, including ‘Blue Beauty.’ The blooms of ‘Caucasian Nepeta’ are enormous and spectacular, while Faassen’s Catmint develops a thick clump of huge, blue-green leaves.

Catmint plants are grown in Japan, China, Pakistan, the Himalayas, Crete, Portugal, Spain, and other nations.

The herb appears to grow in some form or another in practically every country.

Most of them enjoy the same dry, hot conditions as common catnip, but a few, like Kashmir Nepeta, Six Hills Giant, and Japanese catnip, prefer moist, well-drained soils and can bloom in partial shade.

Find out more about the plants that grow with catnip.

Catnip, like other mints, has a similar appearance but also contains the aromatic oils for which the mint family is famous.

This makes catnip an excellent garden companion plant.

Several studies have found that using these oils on your fruit and vegetable plants can help keep them healthy and free of pests. Using catnip as a pest control agent is a natural method to keep insects at bay and your landscape safe.

Catnip as a Plant and Insect Companion If you’ve ever seen a cat around a catnip plant, you know how powerful the attraction is. Catnip is not only excellent for a kitty-friendly garden, but it also suppresses several common pests.

Catnip’s many companions include chard, for example. Herbal oils in the plant keep flea beetles away from the vegetables, preventing damage from their feeding.

Other plants that benefit from catnip’s intense aroma can be cultivated alongside it. Many insects dislike catnip’s healthy oils, including:

Aphids and Ants Weevils that eat cabbage Potato aphids Beetles from Japan Beetles that eat fleas Cockroaches Weevils Bugs should be squashed.

That’s a massive list for a simple-to-colonize herb. Catnip, a companion plant in the vegetable garden, can help protect crops from insect damage without using harmful chemicals.

Catnip can be used to cultivate the following plants:

Chard (Swiss) Squash, beets, broccoli, cauliflower, and potatoes. The pungent aroma of the herb also appears to deter mice and voles, two major vegetable garden pests.

As a Plant Companion, catnip can quickly grow invasive and spread throughout a bed.

You can avoid this by planting the herb in a container and burying it among catnip companion plants.

Of course, the herb will draw cats to your yard, but the blossoms will also draw honeybees. You can use catnip as a border if you don’t want cats in your garden.

Cats will be so distracted by the plant’s delectable aroma that they will avoid the soft soil near your plants and go elsewhere to do their business.

You can also watch a cat frolic amid the scented foliage and flowers as an added pleasure.

There will be numerous photo chances!

Catnip can be cultivated from seedlings, cuttings, or cuttings. It grows swiftly and has few disease and pest concerns of its own.

Plant catnip for pest control near plants that require protection in whole light and well-drained soil.

Catnip tends to become lanky, so prune immature plants early to get a denser, bushier shape.

Home use of the plant requires cutting the stems and hanging them upside down in a dry location.

Pull the herb leaves off the stems once they have dried.

Crush the leaves and sprinkle them on doorways and windowsills, as well as anywhere little bug invaders may enter the house.

The odour lasts up to a week and keeps numerous pests away from your home.

Aside from making cats happy, what else is catnip good for?

The name tells it all, or nearly so. Catnip is a common herb that may be grown in a garden but can also grow wild.

If you know how to use catnip, you can benefit from this prolific herb for yourself and your feline companions.

Catnip for Cats Catnip, Nepeta cataria, is a mint-family herb that has long been known to be cat-friendly.

One frequent misconception is that all cats respond to catnip. Only approximately two-thirds of cats respond to catnip by licking, rubbing catnip toys, rolling in the herb, and drooling.

Catnip affects even feral cats. Catnip can be given to cats as a fresh plant indoors in a container or outdoors in a bed.

If you use it in a container, make it large and heavy enough to prevent an eager cat from knocking it over.

Pack or roll toys in dried catnip leave to limit access, then store them sealed and out of reach when not in use.

Other applications for catnip Catnip is not only for cats.

If you produce the herb, you have several alternatives and wonder what to do with the leftover catnip from producing cat toys.

Nepetalactone, a chemical in catnip, has been demonstrated to be an insecticide.

You can use it to repel mosquitoes, spiders, ticks, cockroaches, and other bugs in your home.

As a gardener, you can discourage certain pests by putting catnip among vegetable rows.

One study discovered that growing catnip with cabbage vegetables reduced flea beetle infestations.

In the vegetable garden, catnip can even deter rabbits and deer. Catnip may also have some medicinal effects for people, but before using a herb as a food supplement, consult your doctor.

Tea from dried catnip leaves and flowers has long been used to treat stomach problems, fever and flu symptoms, insomnia, and stress.

It is especially beneficial for sick children because it relaxes and improves stomach problems.