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How To

How to Grow Catnip Plants

Contributor
By John Albers
eHow Contributing Writer
(1 Ratings)
The toughest part about growing catnip is keeping the cat away from it.
The toughest part about growing catnip is keeping the cat away from it.
www.earthhealing.info

Catnip is well known for its effect on cats. The stems and leaves contain nepetalactone. This chemical is believed to bond to the olfactory receptors of a cat, positively stimulating these receptors. The result is that the cat will jump around, pawing and playing with the catnip in a temporary apparent state of euphoria. As it is a member of the mint family, catnip can be used and is often part of French cuisine. The leaves may also be dried and steeped into an herbal tea that is said to aid in causing a person to perspire when in the grip of fever without increasing the body temperature. As this can be a helpful herb to have readily available, here is a guide detailing how to grow your own catnip plants.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions

Things You'll Need:

  • Generic solid fertilizer granules
  • Sand
  • Shovel
  • Styrofoam cups
  • Catnip seeds
  • Water
  1. Step 1

    Begin planting the catnip immediately after the last frost of winter has gone. First decide where you will plant your catnip. It should be in an area that drains well and receives only partial sunlight throughout the day. Under the cover of a large tree or bush would be a good idea. Catnip wards off insects so placing it beneath fruit trees of berry bushes would be wise.

  2. Step 2

    Dig holes about 5 inches deep, 3 inches in diameter, spaced roughly one and a half feet from each other.

  3. Step 3

    Fill your Styrofoam cups halfway with the soil you have dug up. Fill them up the rest of the way with plain sand and mix in a handful of fertilizer granules for good measure.

  4. Step 4

    Place one seed deep within each cup, about an inch short of the bottom. Water the cups well and then punch a dozen holes in the sides and base of the cup.

  5. Step 5

    Place one cup in each hole in the ground and fill in the holes around them. The cups will prevent excessive moisture from saturating the seeds because of the sand content as well as keep out burrowing insects and questing roots.

  6. Step 6

    Water the seeds every few days, maintaining a regular schedule to keep the soil slightly moist. In four or five months your catnip plants should be over a foot tall. They may not flower until the next year, but you will be able to harvest the leaves by late summer.

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