🌱 Chives

Chives are the easiest of herbs: a hardy perennial that comes back every spring, thrives in pots and borders, and gives a mild onion flavour to many dishes. The pretty purple pompom flowers are edible and loved by bees.

Once you have a clump you will have chives for years, and dividing it gives free plants for friends. Chives are happy on a windowsill, so they suit even the smallest of gardens.

Varieties to try

Fine Leaf (traditional, slender leaves)Staro (thicker, upright leaves)Garlic chives (flat leaves with a mild garlic flavour)Forescate (pink flowers)Polyvanna (strong, productive)

Sow seed in trays or pots in March to April on a bright windowsill, or direct outdoors from April to May, 1 cm deep. Sow thinly in small clumps of 5–10 seeds, which can be planted out as a group. Germination takes two to three weeks. Plant out when seedlings are about 10 cm tall, 20–25 cm apart.

The simplest way is to buy a pot from a garden centre or divide an existing clump. Dig up a clump in spring or autumn, split it into small clusters of bulbs and replant. Chives grow in a pot at least 15–20 cm wide, and a pot kept outside near the kitchen door is handy.

Top tips

• Sow seed in small clumps, not single seeds.
• Divide a clump to make free plants.
• A 15–20 cm pot is enough.
• Keep pots near the kitchen for easy picking.

Chives prefer moist, fertile soil and regular watering. Cut them to 5 cm above the ground a few times each summer to encourage fresh, tender growth, and cut back flowers after blooming unless you want seed. Mulch the plants in autumn and feed with a general liquid fertiliser during the growing season.

Clumps become congested after three to four years and flower less, so lift and divide them in spring or autumn. Aphids sometimes appear, and chive rust (orange pustules) and onion fly are rare problems. Cut back and discard affected leaves.

Top tips

• Cut back hard after flowering for fresh growth.
• Divide clumps every three to four years.
• Water pots regularly.
• Feed lightly every month in summer.

Watch out for

Chive rustAphidsOnion flyDowny mildew

Begin picking when the leaves are about 15 cm tall, snipping them 2–5 cm above the soil with scissors. Cut only a third of the plant at one time. Regular cutting keeps the growth fresh and prevents the leaves from becoming tough and straggly.

The flowers can be picked as they open in late spring and early summer. Use them whole in salads or break the florets apart and scatter them over dishes. Chives die back in winter but sprout again in early spring, and a pot brought indoors will keep growing on a bright sill.

Top tips

• Snip with scissors rather than tearing.
• Never cut more than a third of the plant.
• Pick flowers fully open for the best flavour.
• Bring a pot indoors for winter pickings.

Chives are best raw or added at the end of cooking, as heat destroys their flavour. Scatter on scrambled eggs, baked potatoes, soups, cream cheese, salads and fish, or mix into butter and sour cream. The purple flowers add colour and a mild onion kick to salads.

Fresh chives keep in the fridge for a week, wrapped in damp kitchen paper in a bag. Drying loses most of the flavour, so freeze them instead: chop and pack into ice-cube trays with water or oil, or freeze in bags. Chive flower vinegar, made by steeping blossoms in white wine vinegar, turns a lovely pink.

Top tips

• Add at the end of cooking to keep the flavour.
• Freeze chopped chives in ice-cube trays.
• Make pink chive-blossom vinegar in a jar.
• Do not dry chives; they lose their taste.