How to Harvest and Dry Catnip

You planted catnip seeds in the spring thinking of the fun you’d have with your cat. Now you find yourself with a mound of leafy green catnip and don’t know what to do. Harvesting and drying catnip is as easy as the catnip was to grow in the first place. Read on to learn more.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Catnip plants
• Scissors (optional)
• Plastic bags

1. Allow the catnip plant to begin to bloom.

2. Cut or pinch off the top portion of the plant including leaves, stems and flowers.

3. Spread harvested plants out in a dry, cool, ventilated area.

4. When completely dry, crumble plant into plastic bags. Remove any stems.

5. Store plastic bags in a cool, dark location until ready to use.

Tips & Warnings

• You can often get two or three harvests per plant per growing season.
• Never harvest more than half the plant unless it is the end of the growing season.