Chives

Chives: plant 30 cm (12 in) apart in the row and 30 cm (12 in) between rows, 4 per square. Good neighbours: Apple tree, Pear tree, Plum tree.

Key facts

Spacing in the row	30 cm (12 in)
Between rows	30 cm (12 in)
In a 30 cm (1 ft) square	4 per square
Sun	Part sun, 4–6 hours a day
Root depth	15 cm (6 in)
Height when grown	40 cm (16 in)
Crop rotation group	Roots and onions
Support	None needed

Sowing and germination

How it is started	Sown straight into the bed, by dividing a clump
Seeds per hole	1
Plants kept after thinning	1
Seeds per metre of row	5
Sowing depth	1 cm (0.4 in)
Soil temperature	from 7 °C, best 18–24 °C
Days to emerge	10–20 days
Light while germinating	Light makes no difference
Before sowing	nothing needed
When to sow	Indoors 8 weeks before the last frost; outdoors before the last frost; soil at least 7 °C

From seedling to plant

Pricking out	sown where it grows
Takes transplanting	Easily
Hardening off	5–7 days
Life cycle	Perennial
Cold tolerance	Takes a light frost → hardy, takes hard frost
Soil	Ordinary garden soil, free draining, pH 6–7
In a pot	8 L, 25 cm (9.8 in)
Watering	Water when the soil is dry two fingers down; while bulbs form
Feeding	Moderate; at planting, while growing
Support and training	None needed

Harvest and planning

Days to first harvest	60–90 days, from sowing
Ready when	The leaves are big enough to use
Harvest window	Picked again and again, 20–30 weeks
Typical yield	0.1–0.3 kg per plant
Botanical family	Amaryllidaceae
Watch out for	Onion fly, downy mildew
First crop after	1 years
Pollination	Fruits on its own

Good neighbours

Why, with the sources →

Plan Chives in your garden

Open the free planner, drop Chives onto a bed and see how many plants fit.

Start Planning Your Garden

Sowing and harvest

Sow outdoors	Mar–May
Harvest	Apr–Oct

My dates for this crop

My country Last spring frost where I live

Give the date once and this page, the sowing calendar and the planner all follow it.

Months for a temperate climate: about a month later in the north and a month earlier in the south. Give your own last frost date for exact dates.

What to plant next to Chives →

From the same family

Plants of the Amaryllidaceae family share diseases and pests, so they follow each other in the rotation only after a break.

Sources

The values on this page marked as checked come from these sources: spacing, sowing depth, germination, soil, timing and safety notes, each against the source named here.

Culinary Use and Culture of Herbs (from the California Master Gardener Handbook; R10/2019) — UC Cooperative Extension, Master Gardeners of Orange County for: between rows, spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30
People Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets — ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center for: safety; checked 2026-10-28

More in Onion family

← All plants