Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Garden Catmint bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called garden catmint, Faassen's catmint (Nepeta x faassenii).

More about garden catmint

About Garden Catmint

Nepeta x faassenii · also called garden catmint, Faassen's catmint · flowering

Garden catmint is a sterile, clump-forming perennial prized for soft grey-green aromatic foliage and long sprays of lavender-blue flowers from late spring into autumn. A magnet for bees and butterflies, it thrives in poor, free-draining soil and full sun, shrugging off heat and drought. Shearing spent flowers triggers a fresh, tidy second flush.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Flopping after flowering: Stems splay open mid-season, especially in rich soil. Shear the whole plant back by a third to half once the first flush fades to force compact regrowth and a second bloom.

The reasons garden catmint isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming garden catmint traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding garden catmint a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get garden catmint to flower

Maximise sun. Give garden catmint the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for garden catmint and get the feeding right with the garden catmint fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Garden Catmint flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full garden catmint care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Garden Catmint blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my garden catmint flower?

Garden Catmint blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make garden catmint bloom?

Give garden catmint the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does garden catmint normally bloom?