The Cat's Herb Garden

The Cat’s Herb Garden

This is the busy time of gardening.  As I’m planting and replacing, I notice that the catnip I usually have in the bed at the front of the garden shed isn’t doing so well this year.    I will have to refresh the catnip bed by sprinkling in some seeds and raking it in. 

I love catnip as much as my cat Fuzzy does.  It’s a beautiful green plant and it makes the most relaxing tea.  Catnip (Nepeta cataria) is easily grown from seed---you can plant them spring or fall.  It has purplish flowers, and the tea has been used medicinally for many centuries.   It will aid in dispelling colds, helps with headaches, stress and is greatly relaxing.  It’s a good tea to take before bedtime. 

     There’s an old saying, “If you set it, the cats will eat it, If you sow it, the cats don’t know it” and this seems to be in regard to the plant’s intoxicating scent for cats.  They find the smell irresistible (at least some cats do) and if you plant it and brush the leaves it will release the scent telling cats near and far that catnip grows there.  It’s safer to sow seeds. It forms a pretty border plant along with Hyssop and is beautiful in rock gardens.  

     Dried catnip is a main ingredient in cat toys; stuffed mousies, etc.  Here’s another use---take your dried catnip (½ cup and add it to 1 cup of distilled water.  Let it steep for a week, strain and add another ½ cup of dried herb.  After another week, strain this out and put it in a small misting bottle.  Keep refrigerated---it should last a long while.  Whenever your cat’s toys or scratching posts need refreshing, just spray the mist on them (being careful not to spray any other thing for the cat will be all over wherever the spray goes (you may want to lay down newspaper to spray, then discreetly dispose of the newspaper).  ***