The Plant
Chive leaves are grassy green, long, thin, and tubular and grow in lush clumps. Chives shoot forth purple floral seedheads, lovely in a bouquet—or on a salad or steeped in vinegar.
A perennial, chives need a dormant period—during the winter if kept outdoors; in the refrigerator or a cold dark shed if kept indoors.
Divide the clumps as they get pot-bound, or as they begin to take over the neighboring herb or flower beds.
The Flavor
The leaves taste delicately onion-y; the flowers are crunchy and even more mildly onion-y.
Growing Needs
Chives thrive best in full sun but will grow in less than that, even in partial shade. They prefer well watered, but also well drained, soil.
Harvesting
Cut off the leaves with shears as close to the ground as you can, so when new shoots push up, they’ll have no yellowed tips.
Chives can be harvested all during the growing season.
Cut off some flowers to encourage leaf growth. Let a few flowers dry on the stalk and go to seed to insure a new crop of chives.
Snip fresh chives and freeze them immediately in plastic boxes or bags. Freeze them in whole lengths and cut off what you need throughout the winter, or cut them into snippets before freezing and break off pieces as you need them.
Although dried chives are considerably less flavorful than fresh, drying may be necessary or practical. Lay stalks inside a paper grocery bag, fold it shut, and refrigerate it. Within a few weeks, the chives will be dried. Chop them and place them in airtight containers.
Culinary Suggestions
Mix chives into egg recipes and light sauces, fold into cooked vegetables, or stir into salads or soups. Chives enliven any herb butter. They work well as a garnish.
Distinguishing Qualities
Chive are one of the easiest herbs to grow. They’re a good beginner’s herb.
Chives are one of the first herbs to reappear in the spring.
Starting chives from seeds is a long, slow wait. You will grow less impatient if you begin with a clump of stalks from a nursery or someone else’s herb garden!
Tips
Trim your chives regularly. Because they grow up and out profusely, they will soon topple over and look wildly uncombed.
Add chives at the end of your cooking process if you want to enjoy their maximum flavor and color.
Chives brighten almost any hot dish or salad. Add them impromptu as you finish up your food preparations.