When to plant and prune Catmint (nepeta)
Catmint (nepeta) flowers from early June to late September and the dates below cover planting, flowering and the pruning window.
Planting, flowering and pruning by region
Catmint (nepeta) is grown to the calendar rather than to the frost, so the same dates apply across the whole UK and every region below reads the same. Where a plant’s timings do follow the frost, Plot shifts them from the Midlands and Lowland Wales baseline using Met Office average frost dates.
| Where you are | Plant | In flower | Prune |
|---|---|---|---|
| South West Coast and Cornwall | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| South Coast and Channel | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Greater London (Urban Heat Island) | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| South East and Home Counties | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| East Anglia | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Midlands and Lowland Wales | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Wales and West Coast | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Northern England | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Scotland Lowlands and Central Belt | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Scotland Highlands and Islands | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Northern Ireland | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
| Channel Islands and Isle of Man | late March to mid May | early June to late September | late July to mid August |
Growing notes
Flowers from June until the first frost and is one of the best bee plants for a sunny edge or path side. Cats roll on it and flatten young plants, so protect new plantings with a few twiggy sticks; a late-May cut back gives a more compact plant but it flowers reliably even unpruned.
At a glance
- Spacing
- 60 cm between plants
- Eventual height
- 90 cm
- Eventual spread
- 90 cm
- Hardiness
- H7
- Sun
- Full
- Frost tender
- No
- Grows in a container
- Yes, 15 litres or more
- Balcony rating
- 4 out of 5
Feeding
No feeding needed; it flowers best on free-draining, unimproved soil.
Pruning group
In late July cut out the lower, squashed stems at the base and leave the upper flowering stems: they carry on blooming into autumn. Cut the old growth right back in late winter.
What usually goes wrong
- rot on wet soils
- cats flattening the plants
- flopping over paths late in the season
Related guides
Timings cross-checked against RHS guidance for catmint (nepeta).