On Sat, 16 Apr 2005 11:44:13 +0100, "Ant" wrote:

I have 4 catnip plants that I recently bought from a garden center.
Here's a pic.
http://img171.echo.cx/img171/306/catnip5yd.jpg
Plants are about 6" high.

Basically my aim is to grow as many of these as quickly as possible (my
cat's love them so much!!!) and I've heard a little about taking cuttings
from plants and growing them up but I was wondering if these plants are too
young to do it with at the moment.

Also I don't know how to take cuttings, I have 0 gardening experience so any
advice would be greatly appreciated

Catnip is probably as good a plant to learn "taking cuttings" with as
any. Nearly all the members of the Lamiaceae are dead easy from
cuttings.

In this case, I'd plant out your young plants and wait until summer
when the weather is warm (or what passes for warm in the UK). Then cut
off non-flowering growing tips several inches long, trim each one to
just below a node (where a pair of leaves emerge), poke a narrow hole
in the soil, insert your cutting, and gently press the soil around it.

Just do this wherever you want new plants. Most will root without
further ado, though you might want to put a glass jar over each
cutting so kitty doesn't maul them.

You might want to find someone to show you how; taking cuttings is
really very easy, but sometimes written descriptions have all the
clarity of mud.

--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, BC, Canada
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