Just wondering if they were the same...

Are catnip and catmint the same??
I read a hordoculture article that said they were but I'm not sure. Brads grandma gave us some catMINT seeds and I would plant them for the kitties to munch if I
knew they were safe for them to eat.
Please can anyone give me some info??

Catnip is in the mint family. You can tell it by the square stem and the way the leaves align with each other up the stem. All mints grow this way. I've not heard the term catmint, but it makes sense that it is one and the same.

And as far as I know, all mints are edible. Some may be more bitter than others, but all are safe.

No they are not the exactly the same. The latin name starts with Nepeta but they are different species. I grow the perennial "flower" catmint actually several cultivars and my cats do nibble on them. But I don't think the "active ingredient" is anywhere as strong in what we know as the catnip plant. I would not grow catnip in my flower garden but it grows in my veggie garden for the cats!!

I've always had the impression -- though it may be wrong -- that what we refer to as catnip in North America is called catmint in the UK. Anyone care to confirm or deny that?

Same genus but different species.

Originally Posted by rapunzel47

I've always had the impression -- though it may be wrong -- that what we refer to as catnip in North America is called catmint in the UK. Anyone care to confirm or deny that?

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It's called catmint here, but there are many different varieties available at nurseries.

Originally Posted by rapunzel47

I've always had the impression -- though it may be wrong -- that what we refer to as catnip in North America is called catmint in the UK. Anyone care to confirm or deny that?

Click to expand...

I think you are 100% correct. While people are saying things about different species and genus, the terms catmint and catnip are both used to describe the Genus Nepeta (and all species under). There are about 250 different species of Nepeta, which contain different concentrations of the active "Nepetalactone", the chemical kitties like. That being said Nepeta cataria is the most common "catnip", and Nepeta mussinii is the most common "catmint". Realistically, there is a lot of confusion about the two and whether they are the same and which species' of Nepeta are classified as nip/mint....so sometimes the answer changes.

Originally Posted by jcat

It's called catmint here, but there are many different varieties available at nurseries.

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Yes and I was just last night dividing one cultivar nepeta x faassenii "Walkers Low'. Most likely IMO the best of the bunch. Drought tolerant and blooms all summer. I use it as a hedge on the path to my garden shed!!

Originally Posted by rapunzel47

I've always had the impression -- though it may be wrong -- that what we refer to as catnip in North America is called catmint in the UK. Anyone care to confirm or deny that?

Click to expand...

I've always known it as catnip Fran, but it might be known as catmint elsewhere in the UK, I haven't heard of it though.

Originally Posted by GailC

Yes and I was just last night dividing one cultivar nepeta x faassenii "Walkers Low'. Most likely IMO the best of the bunch. Drought tolerant and blooms all summer. I use it as a hedge on the path to my garden shed!!

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How the heck do you keep that stuff contained? I planted some generic "cat mint" (picked up at the garden center at one of the big box stores, who knows what it really was...I had no idea there were so many different kinds!) which the cats loved, but after a couple of years the stuff was out of control! That's the last time I plant anything "mint" in anything other than a pot a a long way from the ground !