Interesting Facts
- The individual flowers of this plant are pretty with the purple spots. Catnip flowers can be white or pale violet, they have purple dots on the lip. The leaves have small hairs which give them a grayish look, this is a good field identification trait . Catnip contains nepetalactone, which could be considered "a legal recreational drug for cats". However, this plant is not as inticing to cats as true Catnip.
Common Names
Common Names in English:
Faassens Catmint, Ornamental Catmint
Description
Family Lamiaceae
Herbs, sometimes subshrubs
or shrubs
, annual
or perennial
, usually aromatic
. Stems and branches usually 4-angled. Leaves opposite, rarely whorled
or alternate, simple
to pinnately dissected
or compound
, without stipules. Inflorescences generally compound, sometimes flowers solitary and axillary
; verticillasters
2- to many flowered, subtended by leaves or bracts. Flowers bisexual
, zygomorphic, rarely subactinomorphic, bracteolate
or not. Calyx persistent
, 5-toothed, 2-lipped; upper lip 3-toothed or entire
(deciduous in Scutellaria) ; lower lip 2- or 4-toothed; tube
sometimes hairy
annulate
inside. Corolla limb usually 2-lipped; upper lip 2-lobed and lower 3-lobed, rarely upper lip entire and lower 4-lobed, also rarely limb (4- or) 5-lobed; tube hairy annulate inside. Stamens epipetalous
, 4 or 2, free
, rarely filaments
connate
, sometimes one staminodial; anther
1- or 2-celled, usually dehiscing longitudinally; disc persistent. Ovary superior, 2-celled and each cell
2-ovuled and style
subterminal
, or ovary 4-parted and each lobe
1-ovuled and style gynobasic (from bases
of ovary lobes) with 2-cleft apex. Fruit usually 4 dry nutlets
. Seeds with or without endosperm.
Approximately 3500 species in 220 genera, distributed worldwide, but mostly in the Mediterranean region and SW Asia. China has 807 species in 96 genera.Xi-wen Li & Ian C. Hedge "Lamiaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 17 Page 50. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org.
Genus Calamintha
Herbs annual
or perennial
. Leaves petiolate
, dentate
. Cymes axillary
, 2-12-flowered, short pedunculate
; bracts lanceolate-subulate. Calyx tubular
to tubular-campanulate, 13-veined, throat
not constricted
, sparsely hirsute
inside, base
not or only slightly saccate
in fruit, limb 2-lipped; teeth of upper lip 3, reflexed
; teeth of lower lip 2, longer
than upper teeth, lanceolate. Corolla almost as long as calyx to much exserted, 2-lipped, tube
gradually dilated
; upper lip emarginate, straight; lower lip reflexed, 3-lobed, middle
lobe
longer than lateral
lobes. Stamens 4, didynamous
, all included
or anterior 2 exserted; anther
cells
2, ± parallel or divergent. Ovary glabrous
. Style
shorter than corolla, complanate
or 2-cleft at apex. Nutlets
ovoid
, rounded
.
About six or seven species: Africa, Asia, Europe; one species in China."Calamintha". in Flora of China Vol. 17 Page 231. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org.
Physical Description
Flowers: Blue flowers in summer. • Bloom Period: April, May, June, July, August. • Flower Color: blue-violet, lavender, violet
Size/Age/Growth
Size: 18-24" tall.
Habitat
Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 594 meters (0 to 1,949 feet).Mean = 100.290 meters (329.035 feet), Standard Deviation = 124.200 based on 281 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre.
Biology
Growth
Culture: Space 18-24" apart.
Soil: Minimum pH: 6.1 • Maximum pH: 7.8
Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .
Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b. (map)
Taxonomy
- Domain:
Eukaryota
(
)
- Whittaker & Margulis,1978
- Kingdom:
Plantae
(
)
- Haeckel, 1866
- Plants
- Subkingdom:
Viridaeplantae
(
)
- Cavalier-Smith, 1981
- Phylum:
Tracheophyta
(
)
- Sinnott, 1935 Ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998
- Vascular Plants
- Subphylum:
Euphyllophytina
(
)
- Infraphylum:
Radiatopses
(
)
- Kenrick & Crane, 1997
- Class:
Magnoliopsida
(
)
- Brongniart, 1843
- Dicotyledons
- Subclass:
Lamiidae
(
)
- Takhtajan Ex Reveal, 1992
- Superorder:
Lamianae
(
)
- Takhtajan, 1967
- Order:
Lamiales
(
)
- Bromhead, 1838
- Family:
Lamiaceae
(
)
- Lindley, 1836, Nom. Cons.
- Mint Family
- Subfamily:
Pyroideae
(
)
- Tribe:
Maleae
(
)
- Genus:
Calamintha
(
)
- Miller, Gard. Dict. Abr., ed. 4. 1754.
- Calamint
- Specific epithet:
nepeta
- (L.) Savi
- Catnip
- Botanical name: - Calamintha nepeta (L.) Savi
- Specific epithet:
nepeta
- (L.) Savi
- Catnip
- Genus:
Calamintha
(
- Tribe:
Maleae
(
- Subfamily:
Pyroideae
(
- Family:
Lamiaceae
(
- Order:
Lamiales
(
- Superorder:
Lamianae
(
- Subclass:
Lamiidae
(
- Class:
Magnoliopsida
(
- Infraphylum:
Radiatopses
(
- Subphylum:
Euphyllophytina
(
- Phylum:
Tracheophyta
(
- Subkingdom:
Viridaeplantae
(
- Kingdom:
Plantae
(
Notes
Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 15-Mar-2000
Similar Species
Members of the genus Calamintha
There are approximately 265 species in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:
C. mixta · C. 'Fritz Kuhn' · C. abyssinica · C. acinoides · C. acuminata · C. adriani · C. adscendens · C. aegyptiaca · C. aetnensis · C. alba · C. albiflora · C. alboi · C. alpina · C. alpina (L.) Lam. var. orontia (K. Maly) Hayek · C. alpina elatior · C. alpina var. elatior · C. annua · C. argyi · C. arundana · C. arvensis · C. ascendesns · C. athonica · C. atlantica · C. baborensis · C. baetica · C. barosma · C. baumgarteni · C. betulifolia · C. betulifolia cilicica · C. betulifolia subsp. cilicica · C. bianoris · C. biebersteinii · C. bolnokensis · C. bonanovae · C. brauneana · C. brevisepala · C. byzantina · C. caballeroi · C. cacondensis · C. cacuminiglabra · C. cadevallii · C. caerulescens · C. calamintha · C. cana · C. candidissima · C. cantabrica · C. caroli-henricana · C. caroliniana · C. catalaunica · C. caucasica · C. cavaleriei · C. chinensis · C. clinopodium · C. clipeata · C. coballeroi · C. confinis · C. conillii · C. coreana · C. corsica · C. cretica · C. cretica variegata · C. croatica · C. cryptantha · C. davisii · C. debilis · C. degenii · C. depauperata · C. dilatata · C. discolor · C. einseleana · C. elata · C. elgonensis · C. eniseleana · C. enriquei · C. epilosa · C. eriocaulis · C. esquirolii · C. euosma · C. exigua · C. fauriei · C. fenzlii · C. ferreri · C. florida · C. foliosa · C. fontii · C. fruticosa · C. fuchsifolia · C. fuchsiifolia · C. gillesii · C. glabella var. diversifolia · C. glabella var. nuttallii · C. glabra · C. glabrescens · C. glandiflora · C. glandulosa · C. glandulosa f. albiflora · C. glandulosa var. canescens · C. glomerulosa · C. gracilis · C. granatensis
Bibliography
- Wu Cheng-yih & Li Hsi-wen, eds. 1977. Labiatae. Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 65(2): 1-649, 66: 1-647.
More Info
- Search for Pictures: images.google.com
- Search for Scholarly Articles: Google Scholar
- Search using Scientific Name and Vernacular Names: All the Web | AltaVista Canada | AltaVista | Excite | Google | HotBot | Lycos
- Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books
Notes
Contributors
- Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
- Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed October 6, 2006.
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed September 18, 2007. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from provider.
- Light, Kris. East Tennessee Wildflowers
- MBLWHOI Library: Universal Biological Index and Organizer. uBio.org accessed July 23, 2008.
Identifiers
- Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 1672717
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 1116672
- Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 936983
