How to Grow Catmint (UK guide)
Catmint (Nepeta mussinii) is a hardy, long-flowering perennial loved for its soft grey-green foliage and clouds of blue-violet flowers. Easy to grow and incredibly reliable, it’s a staple of UK gardens, thriving in borders, gravel gardens, and containers alike. Catmint is highly attractive to bees and other pollinators, drought tolerant once established, and responds well to cutting back for repeat blooms. Often confused with catnip, catmint is more ornamental, less invasive, and better suited to garden planting. Whether you’re growing it from seed or planting young plants, catmint rewards minimal effort with months of colour and structure.
Growing Catmint
Catmint grows best in full sun, where it produces compact plants and abundant flowers, though it will tolerate light shade. It prefers free-draining soil and copes well with poorer ground, making it ideal for low-input gardens. Plants form neat mounds and spread gently over time without becoming invasive. Cutting back after the first flush of flowers encourages fresh growth and a second bloom later in summer. Hardy throughout the UK, catmint dies back in winter and regrows vigorously in spring, requiring very little ongoing maintenance once established.
Perennial favourite
Long-flowering, drought-tolerant and loved by pollinators
How to Grow Catmint from Seed
- 01Sow seeds indoors in March–April into seed trays or modules
- 02Cover lightly with compost or vermiculite
- 03Keep at 15–20°C until germination (7–14 days)
- 04Prick out seedlings when large enough to handle
- 05Harden off before planting outdoors after frost risk has passed
You will need
- 01Seed tray or modules
- 02Peat-free seed compost
- 03Watering can or mist sprayer
- 04Sunny windowsill or greenhouse
Cut back for better plants
Once the first flush of flowers fades, cut catmint back by around one third. This keeps plants compact, prevents flopping, and encourages a fresh round of flowers later in summer.
Plant Calendar
What Catmint Needs
Sunlight
Long-flowering, drought-tolerant and loved by pollinators.
Soil
Long-flowering, drought-tolerant and loved by pollinators.
Water
Low once established; water young plants well
Maintenance
Cut back after flowering for repeat blooms
Space
Allow airflow to prevent flopping
Catmint FAQs
Yes — catmint is a hardy perennial that returns every year in the UK.
It spreads slowly to form neat clumps but is not invasive.
They’re closely related, but catmint is more ornamental and better behaved in gardens.
Yes — cutting back after flowering encourages repeat blooms and tidy growth.
POLLINATOR Plants singing magnet for pollinators, drawing in bees, hoverflies and other beneficial insects.
