- Chives: Origin and Properties
- Chives are blooming: What to do?
- Are chives hardy?
- Propagating chives
- Harvesting chives: when and how to do it
- How to store chives
- Ingredients and uses of chives in the kitchen
- Frequent diseases and pests on chives
- Are chives poisonous to dogs and cats?
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There is a pot of chives in almost every kitchen these days. We will present the kitchen classic to you in more detail and provide tips on harvesting, overwintering and propagation options.
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) are one of the most popular and widespread kitchen herbs. We will tell you how you can ensure a rich harvest and store the chives properly. We also give you a short profile of the plant and tips on correct propagation. You can read about the best way to take care of chive plants in our special article on caring for chives.
Chives: Origin and Properties
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum), as the name suggests, is closely related to the leek (Allium). It belongs to the amaryllis family (Amaryllidaceae). This kitchen herb, which is so popular with us, is widespread, whether as a decoration on the plate, with hearty dishes or simply on bread and butter.
It has many different regional names such as rush leek, grass leek, scallops or Grusenich.
Where the herb comes from and how long it has been cultivated is not known. Chives have a long tradition in Central Europe and have been cultivated since ancient times. Likewise, the herb is said to have been used in China as early as 3000 BC. to have been planted. The fact that chives are particularly tough is also made clear by their distribution: the wild plant can sometimes even be found in the subarctic zones or at high altitudes in the high mountains of the northern hemisphere, as well as in river meadows, on lake shores and on wet meadows.
The herbaceous perennial plant can grow up to 50 cm tall, growing out of thin, ovoid to cylindrical bulbs. One or two green leaves are formed per chive bulb, which are hollow like a tube on the inside. Chives propagate via daughter bulbs, which is why it is naturally often called amulti-leaved clump appears. The violet to purple, rarely white or slightly bluish flowers are formed between May and August. The inflorescence stem is similar in shape and color to chive leaves, but grows taller and is more stable. In the end, a pseudo umbel-like flower with a total diameter of up to 8 cm grows from around 30 to 50 individual flowers. Depending on the variety, the plants differ in appearance and taste. You can read about their properties in our article on the different varieties of chives.
Chives are blooming: What to do?
When the chives start to bloom between May and August, the question arises as to how the flowers are to be used. The chive blossoms are edible and a delicacy for many people, because the nectar they contain not only tastes intensely aromatic, but also slightly sweet. The stem of the inflorescence, on the other hand, is tougher and almost tasteless due to its thick growth.
The nectar of the chive flowers also attracts many insects such as butterflies, bees and bumblebees and is therefore considered to be particularly bee-friendly.
Are chives hardy?
Chives, being a herbaceous plant, dry up in autumn, only to sprout again from the bulbs in spring. The plant is not evergreen, but hardy due to its frost-tolerant bulbs in the ground. These serve as a survival organ for the chives. The onion usually tolerates temperatures of down to -25 °C without any problems. A protective layer of mulch or brushwood can be applied as a precaution.
If chives are cultivated in pots, they should also be overwintered in a cool but frost-free place. As a plant of temperate latitudes, it needs a longer cooling phase every year in winter - just like we humans need our sleep every day. If the chives are not allowed to rest in winter, they lose a lot of their vitality. If you still want to harvest chives in winter, you can use the so-called chive forcing technique:
Instructions forcing chives for fresh chives in winter:
- Stop harvesting one or more chive plants from midsummer.
- Stop watering from September, remove from the soil or pot, remove soil, remove leaves and let the bunch of onions dry in a cool, dry place to give them the rest they deserve.
- In early November thePlant the onions in fresh soil, water with warm water and place in the apartment.
- The bulbs will soon begin to sprout again and can be harvested again from December/January.
- Replant the chives outside or put the pot outside as soon as possible.
Propagating chives
Sowing chives is relatively uncomplicated and promises a high success rate. In addition to the classic sowing, there are other ways to propagate the garden herb, which we will present below.
Propagating Chives by Seeds
If the chives are not cut, they will flower. This gives you the chance to harvest the seeds and use them for sowing again in spring. Seeds are formed around the second week of flowering, after the purple flowers have been pollinated by insects such as bumblebees and bees. The seeds are on the seed stalks of the flowers and can be easily pushed off with the thumb and forefinger. The collected seeds should be dried on kitchen paper and then stored in a dry and dark place. In this way, premature germination is prevented and the seeds can be stored for twelve months without hesitation. To find out how to plant the chive seeds next year, read our special article on how to plant chives.
Tip: Would you like to grow your own herb garden for the kitchen? Our Plantura herb growing set contains precise instructions and all the necessary tools for sowing chives. Together with four other, versatile kitchen herbs, you can grow your own herbs in no time.
Share chives
An alternative to propagating chives from seeds is vegetative propagation by dividing the chives plant. For this purpose, the existing plant can be removed from the ground about every three years - preferably in April - and divided into two parts together with the chive root. Both parts should then be planted again and watered well, they will root themselves and thrive again.
Harvesting chives: when and how to do it
The chives from the windowsill can be harvested and eaten throughout the year. But chives from the garden can also be harvested from spring to autumn without any problems. In both variantsit is important that only enough is harvested that it does not damage the plant. When the need is high, it is better to cultivate one or two more plants than to damage a single plant by over-harvesting. This means that you can enjoy the plant for many years. To cut the chives as close to the ground as possible, it is best to use a sharp knife or scissors. The chives can then be eaten raw or used as a seasoning for cooking.
How to store chives
Chives are best harvested fresh and as needed. If you want to stock up for the winter months, you should cut back the plant vigorously in early autumn. We will show you what options there are for longer storage. Incidentally, chives can be kept damp in the fridge for about a week without hesitation.
Can you freeze chives?
Yes, freezing is the most common way to store chives. For this, the chives should be washed and dried well. Then cut the stalks into small pieces. If these are placed in a freezer bag or a can and frozen, they will keep for months. An advantage of freezing is that the flavor is preserved despite the long storage.
Dry chives?
In principle, it is possible to dry chives for longer storage. Although the kitchen herb lasts a long time in this way, dried chives lose their taste. In addition, the spice loses consistency and is more reminiscent of straw than fresh herbs.
Ingredients and uses of chives in the kitchen
Chives are considered medicinal herbs. It contains a lot of vitamin C and phytochemicals - mostly sulphurous compounds - as well as essential oils. In order to benefit from the valuable substances, chives should best be eaten raw. The use of chives in sour cream, herb butter and quark as well as herb dips is particularly popular. The herb is also good in pancake and potato soup or in salads.
Frequent diseases and pests on chives
Chives are easy to care for and know only a few pests. Due to the mustard oils it contains, it protects itself from mostpests. Occasionally the rust fungus Puccinia allii occurs, against which common fungicides are of little help. In most cases, a radical pruning of the affected plants is best suited to contain the infestation. A few weeks later, the plant grows he althy from the bulbs. Plants with fungal infestation should not be disposed of in the compost but in the residual waste bin.
Are chives poisonous to dogs and cats?
Chives can be particularly dangerous for cats, as they can easily be mistaken for cat grass and are therefore chewed on. If it is eaten by cats or dogs, even relatively small amounts can lead to symptoms of poisoning such as tremors, unsteady gait, diarrhea or vomiting. Larger amounts can cause irritation of the gastric mucosa, damage to the hemoglobin in the blood or damage to the bone marrow. In severe cases, recovery is slow. A dose of around 15 to 30 g per kg of the animal's body weight can even be fatal. It is unlikely that an animal would consume such large amounts of chives. That said, be sure to keep an eye out for characters with the occasional "glutton" near Chives.
Do you want to grow a herb garden for the kitchen? Then read our article on planting and caring for herbs in pots.