How to Grow Cat Grass at Home | Petal & Pounce

Growing cat grass at home is simple and doesn't require much space or equipment. Wheat makes an excellent cat grass and grows quickly indoors, giving your cat a pot of fresh green shoots to nibble.

What is cat grass?

Cat grass is simply grass grown specifically for cats to nibble. It isn't a particular species of plant – several cereal grasses can be grown as cat grass, including wheat, barley and rye.

Wheat is particularly easy to grow at home and produces soft green shoots from ordinary wheat grain.

What you'll need

To grow wheat cat grass, you'll need:

• Wheat cat grass seed

• A shallow container or plant pot

• Compost

• Water

• A bright windowsill or other light position

Start with wheat cat grass seed if you already have a suitable container and compost. A shallow container works well because cat grass doesn't need a deep root run.

If you'd rather start with a kit, take a look at the cat grass growing kit.

How to sow cat grass

Fill your container with compost, leaving a little room at the top.

Scatter the wheat seed fairly generously across the surface. Cat grass is normally grown much more densely than plants you would grow to maturity, as you're aiming for a thick patch of young grass.

Press the seeds gently into the compost and cover them with a thin layer of compost.

Water well, but avoid leaving the compost waterlogged.

Where should I put it?

Keep the container somewhere reasonably warm while the wheat germinates. Once the shoots appear, move it into a bright position such as a windowsill.

Keep the compost slightly moist as the grass grows. If it becomes too wet, particularly in a poorly ventilated position, mould can develop.

How quickly does cat grass grow?

Wheat germinates quickly under suitable conditions. You should usually begin to see shoots within a few days, although temperature and growing conditions will affect the speed.

The grass will then grow rapidly towards the light.

Wait until you have a good growth of established green shoots before putting the container somewhere your cat can reach it.

Keeping a supply of fresh cat grass

Cat grass doesn't last forever. Once a pot becomes tired, damaged or overgrown, it's usually easier to sow another.

If your cat enjoys having grass available regularly, try sowing a second container before the first one is finished. Staggering your sowings means you can have another pot growing while your cat is using the first.

Because wheat seed stores well when kept cool and dry, you can keep some ready for your next sowing.

An easy indoor growing project

Growing wheat cat grass is a very simple way to grow something fresh indoors, even if you don't have a garden. A small container, compost, water and wheat seed are all you need to get started.

Petal & Pounce cat grass seed is supplied in convenient 20g packets, ready for sowing at home. Explore the cat grass collection for growing options.