How to Grow Chives

Forming clumps of mild, onion-flavoured leaves, chives are tasty, versatile and low maintenance, ideal for even the smallest gardens. These herbaceous perennials

Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all year round, while less hardy types need protection over winter. The term herbaceous perennial is used to describe long-lived plants without a permanent woody structure (they die back to ground level each autumn), distinguishing them from trees, shrubs and sub-shrubs. grow well in sun or partial shade, in containers or in the ground, where they make an attractive edging plant for herb and veg beds. Their pollinator-friendly flowers are also edible.

A popular and easy-to-grow herb, chives (Allium schoenoprasum) are in the onion family. Small bulbs

These are fleshy, rounded, underground storage organs, usually sold and planted while dormant. Examples include daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, lilies, onions and garlic. The term is often used to cover other underground storage organs, including corms, tubers and rhizomes. , up to 1cm (½in) across, sprout narrow, cylindrical leaves about 30cm (12in) tall. These can be harvested from spring to autumn, providing tasty pickings for many years. Snip them regularly to keep fresh leaves coming. Chives are best used raw – finely chopped and sprinkled over salads and hot dishes for a fresh, oniony flavour.

Most chive seeds and plants offered for sale are Allium schoenoprasum. There are some varieties available, as well as several related species:

• A. schoenoprasum 'Forescate' – grows larger than the species and has pink flowers
• A. schoenoprasum f. albiflorum – white flowered form
• A. tuberosum (garlic chives or Chinese chives) – these form larger clumps of taller leaves, 40-50cm (16-20in) long, that are flat rather than cylindrical and have a mild garlic flavour. The clusters of starry white flowers are also edible
• A. nutans (Siberian garlic chives, blue chives of flat-stalked garlic) – these have broad, flat, grey-green leaves up to 60cm (2ft) tall, with a mild garlic flavour and edible, bluish-mauve or pale pink flowers

A wide range of herbs, including chives, are grown in all the RHS gardens, so do visit them for inspiration and growing tips.

What and where to buy

You can buy chive seeds from most gardening retailers, and potted plants are cheap and widely available too, from garden centres and online retailers. To track down particular varieties and other species, try herb nurseries and online suppliers.

Recommended Varieties

Siberian chives

Allium nutans – flat leaves with a mild onion/garlic flavour. Flowers are blueish-mauve or pink.

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Garlic chives

Allium tuberosum – also called Chinese chives. Flat leaves with a mild garlic flavour. White flowers.

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Chives

Allium schoenoprasum – thin cylindrical leaves and mauve flowerheads, up to 30cm tall.

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'Silver Chimes'

A variety of Allium schoenoprasum with white flowers.

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Although plants in small pots are readily available and usually reasonably priced, you can also grow chives from seed.

Sowing indoors

Early spring is an ideal time to sow chives indoors to produce young plants ready for planting out in late spring or early summer, once they’re about 10cm (4in) tall. Later sowings through spring and summer can be made, especially if you want to keep a regular supply of young plants indoors on a sunny kitchen windowsill.

Fill modular trays or small pots with peat-free seed compost

Seed compost is a free-draining compost formulated for germinating seed. It often contains a mix of fine materials including sterilised loam, coir, coarse sand or grit. It contains low levels of nutrients, as high levels could damage seedlings. and sow a few seeds at a depth of 0.5-1cm (¼–½in) into each module or pot and place in a warm, bright space. Keep the compost

Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own. slightly moist.

Sowing outdoors

In spring, sow chives outdoors directly into the ground or a container in a sunny or partially shaded area. Before sowing, weed the ground thoroughly then fork it over to break up any hard lumps. Remove any stones and rake to a fine texture. Alternatively, if you’re practising no-dig, mulch

Mulch is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil surface in late autumn to late winter (Nov-Feb). It is used to provide frost protection, improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, reducing water loss from the soil, for decorative purposes and suppressing weeds. Examples include well-rotted garden compost and manure, chipped bark, gravel, grit and slate chippings. the surface with a layer of well-rotted, fine organic matter and sow directly into the mulch. If sowing into containers, use a good quality peat-free, loam-based compost

Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own. . Sow thinly at a depth of 0.5-1cm (¼–½in) and thin seedlings

A seedling is a young plant grown from seed. to 15–20cm (6–8in) apart.

The quickest and easiest way to get chives started in your garden is to buy young potted plants. These can be planted outside at any time of year, although spring is an ideal time. Large plants can often be pulled apart into several smaller clumps for planting. You can also transplant young seed-raised plants outdoors once they’re about 10cm (4in) tall. If you're planting out indoor-grown chives before June, be sure to acclimatise them to outdoor conditions by hardening them off.

Choose a planting site in sun or partial shade with fertile, moisture-retentive soil that doesn't become waterlogged

Describes soil or potting compost that is saturated with water. The water displaces air from the spaces between soil particles and plant roots can literally drown, unless they are adapted to growing in waterlogged conditions. Waterlogging is common on poorly drained soil or when heavy soil is compacted. . No soil preparation is generally needed before planting. However, if your soil is poor, mix some organic matter, such as garden compost, into the soil you remove from your planting hole and use this to backfill after planting. This minimises soil disturbance and helps your plant get off to a strong start.

Chives grow well in containers, which can be placed in a handy spot, so you can pick them easily whenever needed. Use a peat-free soil-based compost

Soil-based compost is a potting compost that includes sterilised soil/loam in the mix. As loam contains sand, silt and clay, it does not rot down like organic materials, so adding soil/loam to compost ensures it is longer lasting – it is often used for shrubs in pots and will last 3–4 years without the need to be replaced. to fill a container at least 20cm (8in) wide and deep.

When planting, space the clumps at least 15cm (6in) apart, and position them at the same level they were previously growing, then firm in and water well.

Established clumps of chives are easy to maintain – simply harvest leaves regularly to encourage more to grow. To keep plants looking tidy and growing well - cut back old leaves, deadhead

Deadheading is the process of removing spent flowers from plants to encourage more blooms and prevent seed production. This helps to redirect the plant's energy into producing more flowers rather than producing seeds. , and lift and divide clumps every three or four years.

Watering

Water newly planted chives during dry spells in their first summer. Once established in the ground, they shouldn't need any additional watering – except during exceptionally prolonged dry spells. Plants in containers dry out more quickly, so water during the growing season

The period of time when an individual plant is in active growth. This will depend on the local climate and light levels, and can vary between different plants, although it is broadly from spring to autumn. to keep the compost

Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own. evenly moist.

Mulching

In late winter or early spring, apply a mulch

Mulch is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil surface in late autumn to late winter (Nov-Feb). It is used to provide frost protection, improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, reducing water loss from the soil, for decorative purposes and suppressing weeds. Examples include well-rotted garden compost and manure, chipped bark, gravel, grit and slate chippings. of well-rotted organic matter, such as garden compost

Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own. , around clumps of chives growing in the ground. Mulching

Mulch is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil surface in late autumn to late winter (Nov-Feb). It is used to provide frost protection, improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, reducing water loss from the soil, for decorative purposes and suppressing weeds. Examples include well-rotted garden compost and manure, chipped bark, gravel, grit and slate chippings. will improve your soil, help to retain moisture and suppress weeds.

Propagating

You can easily make new plants from an established clump of chives by lifting it in spring or autumn and dividing it into several smaller clumps. Replant these straight away (see Planting above), either into the ground or in containers. Do this every three or four years to stop clumps getting overcrowded and keep them healthy and growing strongly.

Chives will readily self-seed when given suitable growing conditions. If you leave some plants to flower and set seed, you can either collect the seeds to sow yourself or let them drop and grow where they like.

Flowering

Chives produce pompom flowerheads in late spring and summer, which look decorative and are edible too. The nectar-rich flowers are also great for pollinating insects. After flowering, to keep the plants looking neat, snip out the tough flower stalks right at the base, unless you want the plants to self-seed (see Propagating above). Alternatively, cut the whole clump down to about 5cm (2in), to stimulate a flush of fresh foliage that you can start picking in a few weeks.

You can harvest chives growing outdoors from late spring until they start to die back in autumn. To extend the harvesting period, pot up a clump and bring it indoors over winter, keeping it on a sunny windowsill.

To harvest the mild, onion-flavoured leaves, simply snip with scissors just above the base whenever required. Remove any faded leaves at the same time. Harvest in the morning if possible, when the leaves are lush and juicy. In hot weather, put the leaves straight into water to keep them from wilting. The more often you harvest, the more new leaves they will produce. Use chives raw, as they lose their flavour if cooked. Simply chop the leaves finely and scatter over all kinds of cold or cooked dishes, from salads, potato salads and cream cheese to omelettes, soups and pastas.

You can also harvest the edible flowers, which appear in late spring and summer. Pick newly opened flower heads and scatter the tiny individual flowers into salads and other dishes, for extra colour and a mild onion flavour.

Chives are usually healthy and robust plants that crop well for many years, although do look out for aphids and leek rust – see Common problems below.

Common Problems

Aphids

Aphids are sap-sucking insects, they have many predators and are the basis for many food chains. The sap sucking can cause a lack of plant vigour, dis...

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Leek rust

Leek rust is a common fungal disease of leeks and garlic, but also affects onions and chives. The fungus causes bright orange, raised spots (pustules)...

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