Growing and harvesting chives: the tender perennial at the bed's edge

Chives are probably the first herb a gardener grows successfully, and one of the last they give up on. Unlike thyme and sage, they do not come from the dry maquis but from damp meadows and stream banks of the northern hemisphere. That changes everything: they do not want lean, dry soil but rich, fresh ground. Understand this one difference and you will harvest from a single clump for many years.

Spot and soil: rich and fresh

Chives like sun to part shade. They take full midday sun as long as the soil does not dry out, and in light shade they hold up even better in hot spots. Ideal is a humus-rich, deep soil that holds moisture without waterlogging.

Before planting, work in ripe compost, because chives are genuinely hungry compared to the Mediterranean herbs. During the growing season they must never dry out completely: under drought stress the tubes quickly turn yellow and the tips brown. One or two handfuls of compost in spring and regular watering in dry spells keep them juicy green.

Planting, sowing and dividing

The fastest way is a pot from the nursery, set into the bed from March. Such pots often hold many single plants crammed together, and you can split the root ball into two or three portions before planting, then each grows better.

You can sow from CW 13 straight into the bed or into pots. Chives germinate at 15 to 20 degrees in about two to three weeks. Easiest of all, though, and this is the nicest way, you propagate them by dividing an existing clump, more on that below.

Harvesting right: cutting the tubes

When harvesting, many make the same mistake: they pluck single tubes from the middle. Better to gather a bunch and cut it with scissors about two to three centimetres above the ground. That leaves the base unhurt and it re-sprouts cleanly. Always cut a whole batch from the outside and leave the middle standing, then the clump always has fresh green.

The more often you cut, the more tender the chives stay. Neglected clumps turn coarse and start to flower. A cut every few weeks keeps them young and productive.

The flower: edible, but a turning point

In May and June the round, pink-violet flowers open. They are pretty, edible and give salads or quark a mild onion note, and bees love them too. For the kitchen they have one catch: as soon as chives flower, they put their energy into seed and the tubes turn hard, hollow and fibrous.

The trick is simple: after the main bloom, cut the whole clump right back to the ground once. It then re-sprouts fresh and tender within two to three weeks, as if you had a second spring harvest. If you do not need the flowers, cut the buds out beforehand and keep the chives permanently in the leaf stage.

Dividing: the renewal trick

After three to four years a chive clump grows dense in the middle and loses vigour. Then division is due, best in early spring or autumn.

1. Dig up the clump

   Lift the whole clump generously with the spade and take it out of the ground with its root ball.

2. Split into pieces

   Split the ball with your hands or the spade into several fist-sized pieces. Each should have plenty of little bulbs and roots.

3. Replant

   Set the pieces into fresh spots with a little compost and water well. One old clump becomes three or four young ones.

4. Give away or pot up

   Spare pieces you can give away or set into a pot, which comes onto the windowsill in winter for forcing.

Through winter and forcing on the windowsill

Chives are fully hardy but die back completely in late autumn and vanish above ground. That is normal, no worries, in spring they re-sprout reliably. In the bed they need no winter cover.

If you want fresh chives in winter too, dig up a piece in autumn, pot it and let it sit through a few frosty nights outside. The plant needs this cold spell. Then bring the pot into a bright, cool place, water it, and after two to three weeks it drives fresh green for the winter kitchen.

Varieties and relatives

In the kitchen

Chives belong to the herbs you never cook with. Their fine onion note fades in heat. Always scatter them freshly cut over the finished dish: onto the buttered bread, into the quark, over potatoes, eggs or soups. Dried they lose almost everything, so freeze them finely cut in portions instead.

Enter dividing and the cut back after flowering as recurring tasks in your garden journal. Then you have tender chives all through the garden year, and the clump at the bed's edge accompanies you, as befits a good kitchen herb, for many years.

Common questions about chives

Why do my chives turn yellow and hard?

Two common reasons: too dry, or in flower. Chives need evenly moist, rich soil; under drought the tubes turn yellow. And as soon as they flower, they turn hard. You fix both with a complete cut back to the ground, watering and a handful of compost.

How do I cut chives correctly?

Gather a bunch and cut it with scissors two to three centimetres above the ground, do not pluck single tubes from the middle. Harvest in batches from the outside and leave the middle standing, then the clump re-sprouts cleanly.

Can I harvest chives in winter?

Not outside, they die back completely. But in autumn you can pot up a piece, let it sit through a few frosty nights and then bring it into a bright, cool place. After two to three weeks it drives growth for the winter kitchen.

Are chive flowers edible?

Yes. The pink-violet flowers taste mildly of onion and look pretty in salad or on a quark sandwich. Pluck single florets out of the ball. Only the tubes turn hard after flowering, so harvest part of the clump beforehand.

When and why should I divide chives?

Every three to four years, in early spring or autumn. Old clumps grow dense in the middle and weaken. Dig up, split into fist-sized pieces, replant with compost. That renews the plant and gives you several new ones at once.