the.com/catmint
the herb that turns dignified predators into giggling, drooling, floor-rolling fools.
means A mint-family herb (Nepata cataria and its relatives) whose aromatic leaves famously intoxicate cats and have long been brewed into a mild herbal tea by humans.
from A plain compound of "cat" and "mint" — English saying exactly what it means: the mint that cats love. "Mint" itself travels back through Old English and Latin to Greek "mintha," which legend tied to a nymph named Minthe. The Latin name "cataria" likewise nods to cats. Its other name, "catnip," is the same idea worn down, the "nip" coming from "nep," an old word for the plant.
- chemical key
- nepetalactone hijacks cats' scent receptors directly
- bug repellent
- outperforms DEET against mosquitoes in studies
- not universal
- about a third of cats feel nothing
- human tea
- once brewed as a calming bedtime drink
- cub-proof
- kittens stay immune until months old
nepeta faassenii — hybrid catmint cultivar widely grown in gardens, sterile but flowers prolifically
nepeta cataria — the original catnip species native to central asia, contains nepetalactone that affects cats