ChivesAllium schoenoprasum

Chives are perennial and hardy: they settle in for years in a sunny or partly shaded corner, in moist, rich soil. The edge of a bed, where they do not get in the way of digging, the foot of roses or strawberries, from which they keep certain pests away, or a pot on the kitchen windowsill suit them perfectly. Only avoid soils that stay drowned in winter, where the bulbs rot, and dry, scorching corners, which yellow and toughen the stems from July. Two or three clumps are enough for a family.

Loosen to 20 cm and work in two to three kilos of mature compost per square metre, as chives appreciate nourishing soil to regrow after each cut. On heavy clay, add a spadeful of coarse sand for drainage, or plant on a slight hump. Crumble the surface finely if you are sowing, as the seeds are small. In a pot, prepare a mix of two thirds potting compost and one third garden compost, over 3 cm of clay pebbles, in a container at least 20 cm across and deep, with drainage holes.

Sow from March to May in open ground, or in August-September for clumps ready the following spring. Make stations of about ten seeds every 20 cm, 5 mm deep, in fine soil kept moist; germination takes two to three weeks at 15 °C. Never separate the seedlings, as chives live in a tight clump. A February sowing indoors, in a 12 cm pot at 18 °C, gives a clump to put out in May. The seeds quickly lose their viability: use this year's or last year's at most.

Quickest is a division taken in March or October from a neighbour's clump: about ten bulblets with their roots, separated by hand from the root ball, are enough to make a new clump productive by summer. Shop plants should be chosen upright, bright green, without dry tips. A supermarket pot, too dense, can be divided into four after soaking and repotted straight away. Common chives suit everyone; Staro gives thick stems for the kitchen; Chinese chives, with flat leaves and a garlic taste, deserve a pot of their own.

Plant clumps, divisions or plants from March to May or in September-October, every 20 to 25 cm, in a hole twice the size of the root ball. Set the crown at soil level, the bulblets just covered, firm and water copiously, a litre per clump. Cut the stems back to 5 cm after a division to limit evaporation while the roots take hold. A light mulch of sieved compost around the clump feeds it and keeps the soil cool. Divisions planted in autumn establish best and give a first abundant cut from March.

Chives are the pot herb par excellence: a 20 cm pot, rich compost, an east- or west-facing windowsill, and they produce ten months a year. Water as soon as the surface dries, every two days in summer, emptying the saucer, and give a liquid organic feed every three weeks from April to September. Divide and repot every year in March, as the clump quickly exhausts a small volume. The pot spends winter outside without concern; brought in during January after a few weeks of frost, it starts again within a fortnight.

Separating the seedlings one by one at transplanting, like lettuces, gives isolated stems that languish: chives are handled by the clump. Cutting only the tips of the stems leaves stubble that dries and looks ugly; you cut 2 cm above the ground. Leaving a clump in the same pot for three years without dividing makes it yellow in the centre. Forgetting to water in July toughens the stems. Finally, bringing the pot indoors from October stops it getting the cold it needs to renew itself: let it freeze for a few weeks before forcing it in January.

In open ground, chives make do with our rain in spring and autumn, but demand water in summer: five litres per clump once or twice a week without rain, at the base, preferably in the evening. A thirsty clump yellows from the tips of the stems, toughens and flowers prematurely. In a pot, water as soon as the surface of the compost dries, almost every day in July-August, never leaving the saucer full, as the bulblets fear suffocation. After each complete cut, a copious watering relaunches regrowth within days.

In spring, scratch a handful of mature compost in around each clump and mulch with 3 cm of dried grass clippings or shredded leaves, keeping the heart clear. Chives regrow after each cut thanks to nitrogen: nettle liquid diluted to 10 % in April, June and August keeps up the pace. In a pot, replace this with a liquid organic feed every three weeks. A pale, thin clump lacks food; a clump that flops has too much and lacks light. Stop all feeding in September to let the plant go into rest.

Cut with scissors 2 or 3 cm above the ground, by the handful, starting from the outside of the clump, as soon as the stems are 15 cm long. Two or three times a season, cut the whole clump back, water and feed: it starts again within ten days with fine, tender stems, especially if you do it just after flowering. The pink pompoms of May-June are edible and feed the bees; leave them, but cut them off once faded to avoid invasive self-seeding. Every three years, in March or October, dig up the clump, divide it into four by hand and replant the vigorous pieces in fresh soil.

Rust is the only common disease: orange pustules appear on the stems in a hot, humid summer. Then cut the whole clump back to the ground, put the waste in the bin and not the compost, water, feed; the regrowth is healthy. Divide and space out clumps that are too dense, which dry badly. Black aphids are rare and go with a jet of water. Onion fly can reach a weakened clump; remove the soft bulblets and replant elsewhere. Yellowing in the centre signals an ageing clump or exhausted soil, and is fixed by division.

March, removal of dry stems, division if needed, compost and liquid feed, first cuts. April-May, full production, flowering, picking the pompoms. June, complete cut-back after flowering, watering and feeding. July-August, diligent watering, second cut-back if the stems toughen. September, last abundant cuts, autumn sowing or planting. October-November, the clump yellows and goes into rest; leave the dry foliage in place, it protects the bulblets. December, nothing to do, or bring in a pot after a few frosts. January-February, forcing a pot on the window for fresh stems before spring.

Chives are cut from March until the November frosts, with a lull in high summer if they lack water. To enjoy them in winter, lift a clump with its root ball in November, let it freeze outside for three or four weeks in a pot, then bring it in during January onto a bright windowsill, at 15 to 18 °C: its dormancy broken by the cold, it regrows within a fortnight. A cold frame or a cloche placed in February over a clump in the ground brings the first cut forward by three weeks. A forced clump must then rest outside for the whole growing season.