Catnip (also called catmint) is a perennial in the mint family. Leaves are somewhat heart-shaped and toothed; flowers are gray-blue on short stalks.

The plant was brought to America by English colonists who used it as a tea. It was popular in English country places where China tea was not affordable. The tea was considered soothing and good to drink at bedtime. It was used for colds and for fever. It's also been recommended for hysteria, headaches, and nightmares.

On the other hand, it was believed that chewing catnip makes even the most gentle person quarrelsome. Rats are said to avoid going near a place that smells of the herb, so it may be well to surround the place with the plant. Catnip forms a pretty border and is also a suitable plant for the rock garden.

Harvest the leaves for curing as plants mature and start branching out; dry by hanging leaves in a warm, dry place. For tea, crumble dry leaves and use 1 teaspoon per cup plus "one for the pot" and brew for at least ten minutes. DO NOT BOIL or you will destroy flavor and effectiveness.

The tea may be drunk freely, but if taken in very large doses when warm, it frequently acts as an emetic the old herbals tell us. Old writers recommended a decoction of the herb sweetened with honey for relieving a cough. Others say that catnip juice drunk in wine is good for bruises and that the green leaves bruised and made into an ointment is effectual for piles.

Catnip grows well indoors where its gray foliage is very attractive. Most cats aren't interested in the growing plant unless its leaves are bruised or dead. There's an old couplet:

If you set it, the cats will eat it,
If you sow it, the cats don't know it.

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