Growing Cat Grass

I was in the pet store the other day and saw some pots of "cat grass". They were $4 each. I looked inside the pots and read the labels. There was no dirt. It was nothing but wheat seeds growing in there (the label even said so!) Now I ask you, how is this worth $4? It's not! You can do it much cheaper. 

Growing cat grass is super easy to do, plus your cat will love it!

Of course if you want to grow cat grass for your cats you should probably go the whole nine yards and get a cute pot and put some dirt in there so it grows longer. It's still going to be cheaper than the stuff at the pet store, and will probably last longer.

Cats naturally like to nibble on greens. Growing your own cat grass keeps them from going after your house plants which may be toxic. 

According to Purina cats eat grass for the nutrients, laxative properties or to relieve an upset stomach. Providing cat grass keeps them from getting outside to get at regular grass which may have been treated with chemicals.

Right now, many of the backyard chicken keepers are growing fodder to feed chickens cheaply. Fodder is simply sprouted grains and the grain of choice is usually wheat. I've been doing it myself for awhile. 

See: this post on my chicken blog for all the details on how I grow wheat grass seed for my chickens. If you're already growing fodder or you happen to plant wheat fields, then you already have the seed. 

If not you can pick up a bag of wheat berries (seeds) at a feed store like Tractor Supply or Rural King. You can also buy small bags of cat grass seed in the pet store for about $6. 

Trust me...you'll get a lot more seed for the same price at the farm store! I've found a 1lb package to be around $3 online, which is about 3X the amount as in those bags from the pet store!

How to grow cat grass

There are two methods to growing cat grass. The first is to just  throw a handful of seeds into a pot, mist daily with water and let the cats enjoy. Seeds are created with enough nutrients to sprout and start to grow. 

The seeds have no problem getting to be a few inches tall with just water and a little bit of sunshine. 

You'll want to put a pretty thick layer of seeds in there though, so that the roots will create a mat to hold the whole thing down when the cat chews on the grass. 

At some point the seeds do run out of nutrients. This is where soil and compost (or compost tea) come in handy.

The second method is to put soil in the pot as if you're planting any other seed. Lay the seeds on top of the soil. Mist with water. Cover lightly with more soil. Mist daily until sprouts appear. You may need to water more depending on how dry your climate is.

The seeds should sprout in a few days and you can let your cats have them once they get a few inches tall. Some cats need to be given limited access to the cat grass as they will eat it all the way down any chance they're given! 

Others will take a bite here or there but not overdo it. See how your cat acts before you decide if you want to give them unlimited access to the cat grass.

Watered and fed like any other houseplant it will continue to grow for a few weeks. When it starts to look a little wilt-y plant another handful of seed in a second pot and you should be able to switch them out in a few days!  

While you're planting cat grass, you might as well grow some catnip too! 

Not only will the cats love it, but catnip is often used for human consumption. Catnip has many health benefits including: fever reduction, calming the nerves and can ever ease the pain of a headache. 

~L  

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