Nepeta racemosa, also known as "Nepeta mussinii", should not be confused with catnip. Although it also attracts cats quite a lot, it develops lavender-colored flowers at the tips, making it a perfect plant for covering edges and as a garden filler. You can propagate Nepeta racemosa cuttings in water or soil.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: in the water
Step 1. Choose a suitable sprig from which to take softwood cuttings
Look for a stem that has no or only a few flowers, but with several young leaf nodes or buds. Get one that has new growth instead of a fully mature one; it should snap when you fold it. If this does not happen, it means that the plant is too young, while if you cannot bend the stem easily, the plant is too old. The best time to take the offshoot is in the morning, during the spring or early summer.
- The nodes of the leaves look like small bumps along the stem; they are important to your purpose, as they represent the points from which roots form.
- If you can't find a twig without any flowers, pick one with as few flowers as possible and tear them off. The plant consumes a lot of energy for flowering, while the cutting needs all that is available to form the roots.
Step 2. Cut the twig off the plant
Sterilize a sharp knife or garden shears with rubbing alcohol and cut off a 10cm section from the top of the plant. Make a slanted cut just below a leaf knot; if there is no knot in the first 10 cm from the end, detach the cutting just below the first knot you come across.
Step 3. Put the twig in a glass with water
The water should be deep enough to submerge several leaf nodes; however, avoid keeping the leaves themselves underwater, otherwise you risk them rotting.
Step 4. Find a suitable environment to place the glass and twig
The ideal is a well-lit window, as long as it is not exposed to direct sunlight; although sunlight is important to the plant, excessive exposure could burn or wilt the leaves.
Step 5. Change the water every day
Since there is little water in the vessel, it quickly becomes cloudy and stagnant. You must therefore throw it away and refill the glass with fresh water every day, until the roots begin to develop; it will take about a week or two.
Step 6. Transfer the cutting to a small vase
When the roots reach a length of about 3-5 cm, you need to remove the twig from the water and plant it in a small pot filled with good quality soil; make sure the soil is moist but not too soggy. Place the pot in front of a well-lit window, but not in direct sunlight, and check that it has drainage holes in the bottom.
Consider impregnating the roots with rooting hormone to stimulate growth before planting the cutting
Step 7. Transfer it to a larger pot or directly into the garden
Once it is large and sturdy enough, you can decide to move it to a larger pot or garden soil. However, keep in mind that it is a weed; if you choose to place it in the garden, be sure to enclose it with a brick, plastic or wood structure, so that it does not spread to the rest of the property. You can also limit her space by placing her in a vase or planter and burying the container.
Although it doesn't attract cats as much as catnip, Nepeta racemosa is also a very popular plant for these animals. If you don't want cats to hang around it, you need to protect it by enclosing it with a wire mesh
Method 2 of 2: Into the Ground
Step 1. Choose an appropriate vase
Make sure it has drainage holes in the bottom. If you are thinking of using very fine soil, you can prevent it from coming out of the holes by putting a coffee filter; the paper prevents the earth from coming out, but it allows the water to flow away.
Step 2. Fill the pot with moist soil
You should use a good quality, nutrient-rich gardening mix; it should be moist but not too soggy or soggy. This plant also grows well in coconut peat, perlite, rockwool, vermiculite, and other potting soil mixes.
Step 3. Make holes in the ground
Take a stick, a wooden pin, a pen or a pencil and make a few holes in the soil where you will have to insert the cuttings; therefore make as many as there are offshoots to be buried.
Step 4. Choose a suitable plant from which to take the softwood twig
Look for a stem with few flowers or one that is completely devoid of them, but full of buds or leaf nodes; make sure it bends and breaks easily. If it does not break when you flex it, it means that the plant is too young and not suitable for taking the cutting; if it does not fold easily, it is too old. The best time to harvest the offshoot is in the morning, in spring or early summer.
- The leaf nodes look like small bumps along the stem and are important because they are the areas where roots form.
- If you can't find a stem without flowers, at least pick the one that has as few as possible and tear them off. Flowering involves a considerable consumption of energy by the plant, energies that instead serve the cutting to develop the roots.
Step 5. Cut a section from the plan
Sterilize a sharp knife or garden shears with rubbing alcohol and cut off a twig about 10cm long from the top of the Nepeta racemosa. Make the cut just below the bud of a leaf in a diagonal direction; if there are no leaf nodes in the upper section, detach the offshoot just below the nearest node.
Step 6. Plant the cutting
Gently burrow each twig you cut into the holes you prepared earlier and compact the surrounding soil. Make sure there is at least a few leaf knots on the buried portion, as the roots grow from these bumps.
Consider impregnating the cutting with rooting hormone to promote root development
Step 7. Create a mini greenhouse
To make it, simply cover the twig with a glass jar or plastic bag, so that it remains moist during the growth process.
Step 8. Transfer the offshoot to a larger space
Once several sets of leaves have developed, you can bury the cutting in a larger pot or in a sunny area of the garden. However, keep in mind that it is a weed; to prevent it from invading the whole property, you should keep it under control by creating a barrier of brick, plastic or wood. Also, remember that it attracts cats a lot; if you don't want them hanging around it, you should fix it with a wire mesh.
If you are planting several cuttings in the garden, choose an area that is very exposed to sunlight and with well-draining soil; spacer from each other by about 45-60 cm
Advice
- Nepeta racemosa is a weed; you can prevent it from invading the whole garden by limiting it within a barrier of plastic, wood or brick. It may also be necessary to cut it, prune it regularly, and remove the flowers as soon as they form.
- You can make an infusion with this plant by pouring 250 ml of boiling water over the dried plant material.
