How to grow chives

Chives are a hardy perennial, so you plant them once and cut them for years. Spring is the best time to plant, but a pot-grown plant from a nursery can go in at almost any time of year while the ground isn't frozen.

To grow from seed, sow indoors in early spring and plant the young clumps out once they are about 4 in tall, or sow outdoors in spring once the soil has warmed a little. The seed germinates in one to three weeks, fastest at 59–68°F.

The quickest start of all is a piece of a friend's clump: dig up a section in spring and replant it straight away.

Choose sun or light shade and a fertile soil that doesn't dry out. They cope with light shade, but not with dry, poor ground.

Sow in small pinches rather than single seeds, so that each tuft of seedlings grows into one clump. Cover the seed with a thin layer of soil or compost and keep it moist.

Plant clumps 8–12 in apart. In a 120 × 80 cm raised bed that would be room for eight to twelve clumps, but for one household one or two are usually plenty; tuck them into a corner or along the edge.

Chives grow well in a pot at least 8 in wide and deep, filled with a soil-based compost.

Water in dry spells, especially in pots; chives like moist soil. Cutting regularly keeps the leaves young and tender.

The round purple flowers appear in late spring and summer. They are edible, but stems that have flowered turn tough. Either cut some flowering stems off early, or let the clump bloom and then cut it all back to about 2 in so it sends up fresh leaves.

After a few years the clump gets crowded and less productive. Every two to four years, in spring, dig it up, split it into smaller pieces and replant them.

Chives sprout in March and can be cut until they die back in late autumn. Cut whole bunches of leaves to about 0.8–2 in above the soil rather than snipping the tips; the plant regrows from the base. Morning, when the leaves are full of water, is the best time.

For fresh chives in winter, dig up a clump with its root ball after the leaves have died down and leave it outdoors in a dry, airy spot until about mid-December. Then pot it up and put it on a bright windowsill. The cold spell followed by warmth makes it sprout again.

Chives are tough, but leek rust can show as orange pustules on the leaves, especially in humid weather and crowded clumps. Cut off affected leaves, clear away old debris and divide crowded clumps so air can move.

Aphids sometimes cluster on the leaves, and onion fly can attack the base.

Chives belong to the onion family and share its pests and diseases. Because a clump stays put for years, choose its spot with that in mind, away from beds where onions, leeks or garlic rotate, and never on ground with white rot.

Chives are often planted under roses or next to carrots and strawberries, with claims that they deter aphids, black spot or carrot fly. We found no solid evidence for any of this; it is tradition. It does no harm either, so plant them wherever they suit you.