Last updated on September 26th, 2022 at 11:31 am
Are you gardening catnip for the first time? As an experienced gardener, I know how challenging it can be to grow a herb for the first time.
One major area inexperienced gardeners usually have issues with is finding out the basic requirements of their plants. The need for water arguably tops most necessities in plants as it critically determines how well they grow.
Therefore, if you’re growing catnip in your garden, you may wonder how much water it needs.
So, how often should you water catnip? At the early stages of growing, catnip should be watered twice a week. Subsequently, as the plant grows, you should reduce it to about once a week. In addition, catnip plants prefer average to medium amounts of moisture.
Do You Water Catnip Everyday?
Catnip plants are most common in North America and are quite easy to grow. When I say easy to grow, what may come to your mind is “how easy?”
While it’s relatively easy to grow catnip, certain factors need to be present to grow well; one very important factor that affects its growth is water.
Catnip plants do not require a steady supply of water, but they need just enough. Catnip should not be watered every day as this will leave the soil wet and enhance the chances of root rot in the plant.
In addition, the young plants should be watered every two weeks and reduced to every other week after the plants are well established.
This plant is known to be among the broad category of drought-tolerant plants and is capable of resisting heat as it gets older.
During the dry seasons and high-temperature conditions watering should be increased to once a week or even more.
How Much Water Does Catnip Need?
Catnip plants are drought-tolerant plants, can resist, and as such, watering isn’t and shouldn’t be one of the problems these plants should face in your garden.
On the other hand, light is important for the prolific growth of catnip plants. Most times availability of too much light can dry off the plant; to avoid this, you can moisturize the soil day by day with just a small quantity of water.
Also, if you’re growing potted catnip, it would be best to use around 100mls of water to water it once the top of the soil goes dry.
Furthermore, the seeds of these catnip plants sprout new growth at around 8 to 15 days after being planted. If the seeds have sprouted and the leaves behind shoot out, you should drop the watering levels.
Can Overwatering Kill The Catnip Plant?
The catnip plant is a perennial herb that tends to attract many domestic cats. Overwatering has become one of the problems catnip gardeners encounter, and it ruins all their efforts.
Whenever the catnip plant is overwatered, the plant’s roots begin to rot, causing the plant to wilt and die. Always ensure you’re not overwatering your catnip plant.
One thing you should know is that it’s preferable for the soil you plant catnip in to be fairly moist but not overly wet. If you’re not sure about the moist level, you can go ahead to test your soil with a moisture meter.
Catnip plants do very well in dry conditions, hot temperatures, and arid regions, so don’t get too worried if you forget to water the plant.
Aside from overwatering the catnip plant, a few other things can kill the plant fast and untimely. They include the following:
- Planting before the final frost.
- Planting at the wrong locations, e.g., water logged areas.
- Planting catnip in the shade.
- Not thinning the catnip plants.
How To Know If Catnip Plant Is Overwatered
All the while, I’ve been talking about how much water catnip plants need and how often you should water the plant. But another question a new gardener will have on their mind right now is how to identify an overwatered catnip plant.
There are a couple of ways to identify an overwatered catnip plant. Some of these methods are very easy to apply at home, while the others might require expert gardeners.
Let’s look at some of them:
1. The soil becomes saturated.
2. The roots of the catnip began to decay.
3. The finger test: This is one of the easiest ways to check if your catnip plant is overwatered. Here, you tuck a finger directly into the soil at the base of the catnip plant, all up to your second knuckle.
If the soil sticks to your finger, then there’s already too much water and no need for further watering. However, if your finger comes out clean, then it’s time to re-water.
4. The Dig Test: This test is a little more complicated and might require an expert gardener. The goal here is to determine how much time the water takes to moisten the soil.
Before you begin the watering, check the soil’s moisture level at around 6 to 12 inches below the soil’s surface.
Begin to water and take note of the time.
A few minutes later (depending on the water flow rate). Turn off the water supply and check the moisture level again.
If the soil is saturated, you have to know just how long you water the plants without overdoing it on the water. And also, check if you have been overwatering.
5. Moisture meters: This has you covered for those who don’t want to go through all the stress of being extremely careful with the plants during the Dig Test and finger test.
This method of checking if your catnip is overwatered is more mechanical. This test involves using a gadget known as a moisture meter to check the water level of the soil.
Conclusion
Catnips serve as food for cats, and most times, gardeners also kill two birds with a stone by using them as a filler plant. More often than not, watering becomes a problem for the plant, especially overwatering since it’s a drought-tolerant plant.
To avoid killing the plant with too much water, you should minimize how often you water it to help it survive.