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This is:
A potpourri (below) of catmint/Nepeta species
information as a supplement to other articles.
A plant-based page rather than our usual topic-based page. It's
a pivot point, one list of links to ours and
others' articles that involve catmint/ Nepeta species.
'Walker's Low' and 'Blue Wonder' varieties of catmint are
deservedly popular -- dense, heavy blooming and reliable in a wide
range of soil conditions... so long as they have sun. So steadfast
are they, and so willing to cover the ground with weed-excluding
mats, that they are being planted in masses along highways as
erosion control. Their purple blooms in late spring, with some
repeat in late summer, are impressive even at 70 mph.
Below: It's an easy, colorful filler in the sunny landscape.
Care consists of cutting it to the ground each spring, checking for
weeds, then shearing or weed-whacking the plants' tops after spring
bloom to encourage a second flush.
Cats are attracted to catmint, although it doesn't have as
strong a narcotic effect as catnip (Nepeta cataria). One
client who enjoyed the catmint we planted for him as a groundcover,
eventually asked us to replace it with something cats would not
frequent, because he'd observed that song sparrows also favored it,
for their low nests. The birds were not very successful in it
because of the cats' frequent visits.
Read more about catmint
(Nepeta species):
Design topics:
Designing alternative lawns: No lawn park
strip
Drought tolerant plantings include
catmint: page 12 in What's Coming Up 110
Easiest, best
perennials
Front row perennials for hot places, page
3 in What's Coming
Up 89
Perennials in foundation
plantings
Slowing to sniff: Designing with
fragrant plants
Care:
Cut back hard after bloom: Growing
Concerns 620
ID the best plants for hot summer
weather and tend them to get the best show
We're just introducing this set of perennial info pages. We hope
you'll comment. Let us know if the format was useful, share your
suggestions, tell us we shouldn't have this page at all... anything
helps!
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