Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

Catnip gone rogue?

Hey everyone, I just joined the forum today and plan to stay for the long run. Last September I bought a catnip plant off a website (forget which one) that grew for a while but then went dormant for the year. A few weeks ago it started growing again and in the pot I saw about 5 new Catnip plants. I re potted them all and let them do their thing. It's weird because the main plant has a different leaf structure and smells stronger than the 5 plants that recently started growing. One leaf is rounder, light green in color, and more soft and the cats go absolutely crazy over it; while the other plant is darker, more defined, the cats don't want to do a thing with it, and grows erratically with small buds placed at the joint of new leaves. Do I have a male and female mixed? Somehow have 2 different breeds? Aliens ruined my simple catnip grow operation? Any answers would be greatly appreciated and as soon as I get home from college I will post quality pictures of the 2 different plants. Thanks!

User avatar
applestar
Mod
Posts: 30514
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Are the 5 new plants growing from the stem of the original one or from the ground?

Two -- well 3 -- possibilities that come to mind are
(1) Your catnip flowered and spilled seeds on the soil
(2) Presumably part of the original soil the catnip came in is still around the plant, so
(2a) There were different varieties or crossed-with-different varieties catnip seeds in the soil that have sprouted
(2b) There were roots of different catnip varieties in the soil that have started to grow by root cutting/propagation

You could carefully separate the different varieties of catnip, label them as described, and you'll be able to increase the ones you prefer and get rid of the useless ones. Note that the ones your cat doesn't go for, you could still try drinking in tea to see if YOU like it (AS LONG AS YOU'RE SURE IT'S CATNIP -- OK 4th possibility -- some of them are not catnip :wink: )

WAIT! 5th possibility -- if they're growing from the stem of the original plant, the difference in growing environment from that of the original seller might be causing altered concentration of the essential oils.

Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

Thanks for replying!

On the main plant it had both strains growing at the same time but I ended up chopping off the plant the cats didn't like. Before the plant went dormant for the year it did have time to produce buds and flower so I'm sure the plants that sprouted were from seeds the plant produced. Here is a quick sketch of what the 2 plants look like.

[img]https://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m49/j1m808w3y/Catnipdiagram.jpg[/img]

The plant the cats do not like has a VERY strong stem as opposed to the soft and easily breakable stem of the light green plant. Also note the way new stems develop on both plants. On the light green the stems grow exponentially 2 new stems at a time while the dark green just has 1 new stem every 1/2 inch or so. Sorry about the classy diagram, I used my laptop touchpad and Photoshop for a quick explanation :) Thanks again

User avatar
Kisal
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 7646
Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 1:04 am
Location: Oregon

Having been servant to many, many kitties over the years ... I usually had 4 to 6 at a time who allowed me to share their home ... I've grown a whole lot of catnip. I don't recall ever seeing a catnip plant that resembled your 2nd drawing.

Catnip is a member of the mint family, and is sometimes called Cat Mint. Plants in the mint family have stems with a square-shaped cross section. Does your "unknown" plant have such stems?

Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

Due to unforseen circumstances I won't be able to get pictures posted tonight. Kisal, could you explain what you mean about the square-shaped cross section? Still have a few more years of college so I'm not the brighest crayon in the box ;) The stems look exactly like the ones in my crafty picture...it has one main stem with more sticking straight out every 1/2 inch. When I get pictures tomorrow this will answer any questions I can't :D I just hope I'm not growing a whole bunch of common house weeds!

User avatar
Kisal
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 7646
Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 1:04 am
Location: Oregon

Yes. If you cut through a stem -- across it, not along the length of it -- then look at the cut ends, they should look like a square.

Catnip stem, cross section view:
[img]https://i252.photobucket.com/albums/hh27/Kisal_photos/1332458038_dd810a5349.jpg[/img]

HTH! :)

Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

When I make it home I'll cut it and show the results. The growths are fairly new and still pretty small but hopefully it still shows a solid cross section. Thanks so much for both of your help guys...this has been stumping my grandmother and I for quite a while now! I'll report soon ;)

Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

Alright, I took some quick pictures of the plants...I uploaded with photobucket and the pictures were shrunk to a small size so I apologize if you need to do some squinting!

[img]https://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m49/j1m808w3y/DSC_0006.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m49/j1m808w3y/DSC_0005.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m49/j1m808w3y/DSC_00078585.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m49/j1m808w3y/DSC_0003.jpg[/img]

The cat nip has a defined square cross section while the other is straight up circular and had a lot of sap come out when I cut it...do either of you know what this other mystery plant could be if it isn't catnip?

User avatar
applestar
Mod
Posts: 30514
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Oooh! I feel like I should know this one! What IS it?

... sigh.... it's not surfacing, reminds me a bit of marsh mallow plant (Althaea Officinalia) but I think the leaves aren't quite right.... :?

Is there any scent to the foliage?

Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

Oh wow, good guess on the Althaea Officinalia, I Googled it and was surprised how close the two look similar. Although I don't think it's a marsh mallow plant...the leaves have small bumps on them, raised just enough to be able to feel them with my fingers.

EDIT: It's doesn't have a scent at all, just a bland leafy smell.

iceywind
Newly Registered
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri May 07, 2010 7:51 pm

Oh I have the same problem. I have a catnip plant growing in a pot outside and lately I've seen little plants that look like catnip growing around the yard. They look very similar, but I don't think the wild ones are catnip.

The catnip plant has soft velvety leaves while those have a rougher leaf. They're just like what Jimbobwey has. The cats have no interest in them and their stems are round and sappy when I cut one. I'm curious as to what they are.

Jimbobwey
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Bow, Washington

I'm from North West Washington and lately I have made a point to look at random weeds to see if I can spot the faux catnipz. When geocaching on mountains, ditches, inner city...can't seem to find it. I just felt stupid for growing "weeds" ;)

Eire
Newly Registered
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun May 23, 2010 3:16 pm
Location: New England

[quote="Kisal"]Having been servant to many, many kitties over the years ... I usually had 4 to 6 at a time who allowed me to share their home ... quote]


Love this!
me too, a servant to 3 cats....and I'm allergic...(sucker, I know!) have had catnip plants on the go constantly.
The amazing part is that I find catnip in pots or areas of my beds which I KNOW for sure I didn't plant any there or bury any seeds...it just pops up every summer.

No cat in my house is complaining...they better not!
8)



Return to “Herb Gardening Forum”