I have a number of plants in the garden that reseed one year to the next, things like alyssum, violas, California poppies, some ornamental grasses, as well as the lettuces that I’ve written about. Another of these hardy reseeders is catnip.

A member of the mint family, it can get rambunctious in moister climates where it spreads easily by seed. Fortunately, unlike many other plants in the mint family, for me it doesn’t spread by underground runners. Each year I can count on two to a half-dozen new seedlings each year in seemingly random locations throughout the yard. Anything that comes up where it’s not welcome is an easy tug to remove.

This year I’ve identified two catnip plants in the garden so far. Both were starting to gain stature until Scooter got into one of them last weekend. Fortunately they have that mint gene that helps them bounce back after a thorough chewing. Now I’m wondering whether catnip needs to be a federally controlled substance…