Catnip is named for the intense attraction about two-thirds of cats have to the plant due to the terpene nepetalactone, which acts as a natural insect repellent and induces playful, euphoric behavior in cats. · What is catnip? Dr. Heather Hoffmann discusses why cats like catnip, how catnip works, and how to give catnip to your cat. · Catnip is generally safe for cats and doesn't pose any major health risks. The herb is also safe for young kittens, but they may not develop a sensitivity to it until four to six months. · Catnip, (Nepeta cataria), herb of the mint family (Lamiaceae), noted for its aromatic leaves, which are particularly exciting to cats. Catnip is commonly grown by cat owners for their pets, … Catmintis more ornamental than catnipand features tidier growth with colorful flowers. Catnip has a weedy appearance and can be invasive, requiring careful monitoring when grown in gardens.Part of thesame genus, there's not a huge difference in catmint vs. catnip. Catnip vs. catmint—trying to tell the difference might give you a case of cat-got-your-tongue.Catmint plants have some of thesame aromatic volatiles as their cousin catnip, but not in thesame concentration. Some varieties, like Walker’s Low, are less interesting to cats. Especially tricky iscatnip vs. catmint. All cat owners know their furry friends love the former, but what about catmint? Is it thesame thing or a different plant cats enjoy? While the two plants are similar, there are important distinctions. While catmint also contains nepetalactone, it’s present in much smaller amounts, and although some kitties may still find catmint interesting, it’s unlikely to have thesame enthralling effect as catnip. Catnipis one of the parent plants to catmint, but in what ways are they thesame and in what ways are they different from one another? There’s no denying that the average house cat loves both varieties, but which one will work best in your home garden? It may not be keeping you awake at night, but knowing the difference between catmint vs catnipis helpful and could impact the appearance and enjoyment of your yard.'Catnip can be planted thesame way, but can also easily be grown from seed. You wrote asking if catnipandcatmintwerethesame thing. They are different plants from thesame genus Nepeta . This genus has over 240 species of plants in the family Lamiaceae . Catnip or catmint. Catnipis such an exuberant grower that it does not suffer from being cut back in early summer, when the best stems of the year are harvested for drying. New growth that develops later in the summer can be dried, too, but I think the early summer cuttings are the best. Arecatnipandcatmint different plants, or thesame species?A horizontal image of purple catnip growing in the garden. The common name catmint refers to a number of species in the Nepeta genus of herbaceous perennials in the mint family. Learn how to grow catmint (Nepeta), a hardy, deer-resistant perennial that blooms for months. Get planting and care tips, variety info, and landscape ideas. Iscatmintthesame as catnip?Catmint uses also include the addition to fresh salads or cooked food. How tall does catmint get? Size depends on the variety, with plants reaching 1 to 3 feet tall. Iscatmintthesame as lavender? So arecatnipandcatmintthesame plant? We have a little pot of catnip started. I love the pretty blue flowers on catmint so would be happy to see that this is so. Though most mints can sort of take over.