A clump of common chives with slender green leaves and round purple flower heads.
Photo: Pohled 111 · CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped for display.
Plant Care Steps · Growing guideplantcaresteps.com/plants/chives/

Herbs · A bright patio pot close to the kitchen

Let’s grow
chives.

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Allium schoenoprasum

This plan is for Common onion chives

Light: Choose a bright outdoor spot for steady leaf growth.

Planting steps ↓

YOUR SIMPLE GROWING PLAN

One pot. Here’s the plan.

Before you start Choose a bright outdoor spot, and plan winter protection if keeping the pot through cold weather; exposed roots need more protection than garden roots.

What you need · pot, mix & supplies
  • One 3-gallon pot with drainage
  • 1 nursery clump of common chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
  • Fresh potting mix and clean scissors

The soil

Miracle-Gro Organic Potting Mix (US, feeds for up to 2 months)

A bright patio pot close to the kitchen. Start with nursery clump.

THE POT3-gallon pot

Use a draining pot, about 10–12 inches wide.

HOW MANY1 rooted clump

Buy common onion chives, with fine, round, hollow leaves.

See the planting illustration
Illustrated starting setup: 3-gallon pot; 1 rooted clump.
3-gallon pot · 1 rooted clump Use a draining pot, about 10–12 inches wide. Buy common onion chives, with fine, round, hollow leaves. Original illustration; not to scale.
  1. 01

    Pick common chives

    Check the plant label. This guide is for the onion-flavored, round-leaved type.

  2. 02

    Plant the clump

    Set the root ball at its existing soil level in damp mix. Water thoroughly and allow the pot to drain.

  3. 03

    Let new leaves grow

    Check moisture each morning. Give the plant time to settle before taking a kitchen handful.

  4. 04

    Snip above the soil

    Once established and about 6 inches tall, cut a small bundle, leaving 1–2 inches above the mix. Leave the rest of a young clump growing.

Other ways to start
Divide an established clump+

In spring, lift a healthy clump and separate a rooted section containing several bulbs. Pot that section at its previous depth and water it in. Keep leaves and roots attached; a handful of cut supermarket leaves is not a rooted division.

YOUR EVERYDAY ROUTINE

Water & fertilizer at a glance.

Water when
Check each morning. Water when the top inch is dry, then let the pot finish draining. Empty the saucer or outer pot after draining.
Fertilizer
Miracle-Gro Water Soluble All Purpose Plant Food (US 24-8-16)
Amount
1½ teaspoons in 1 US gallon of water
What that amount covers
Mix into water. Apply only enough solution to wet this pot and drain; the mixing batch is not the amount to pour on.
How often to feed
Every 4 weeks outdoors.
When to start or pause
Wait until the fresh mix’s starter feed is spent. Feed only during active growth; pause when growth stops.

Half the product’s outdoor concentration; use this lighter herb recipe after starter feed ends.

Product directions ↗

Use level measures and the exact US formula shown. If your label differs, follow it; do not transfer this dose to another formula or combine feeding programs.

See the watering & feeding illustrations
A soil check followed by slow root watering and free drainage.
Check before watering. Check each morning. Water when the top inch is dry, then let the pot finish draining. Original illustration; not to scale.
Fertilizer measure for Chives: 1½ teaspoons in 1 US gallon of water. Mix into water. Apply only enough solution to wet this pot and drain; the mixing batch is not the amount to pour on.
1½ teaspoons in 1 US gallon of water Mix into water. Apply only enough solution to wet this pot and drain; the mixing batch is not the amount to pour on. Every 4 weeks outdoors. Wait until the fresh mix’s starter feed is spent. Feed only during active growth; pause when growth stops. Original illustration; not to scale.
Illustrated reference for Miracle-Gro Water Soluble All Purpose, US 24-8-16; not actual packaging.

US PRODUCT REFERENCE

Miracle-Gro

Water Soluble All Purpose

24-8-16

Soluble: mix into water

Check the official US product ↗

Illustrated reference; check the manufacturer’s current packaging and US label.

When to make the first cut
03 / WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

A healthy transplant may be ready for a small harvest around a month after planting, but wait for established new growth. Start modestly rather than shaving a newly planted clump bare.

Seasonal growth and winter protection

Common chives are perennial and can pause growth or die back seasonally. An exposed pot needs a local overwintering plan; do not assume in-ground hardiness guarantees survival in a small container.

For regional planting windows, find your local Cooperative Extension office ↗.

Something looking off?

Are these the same as garlic chives?+

No. This plan uses common chives with hollow, round leaves. Garlic chives are a different species with flatter leaves and a different flavor.

Why has leaf growth slowed?+

Check light, moisture, and the season. If an older clump is crowded, divide it; more fertilizer is not always the answer.

Can I grow them from seed?+

Yes, but a rooted clump is the quicker start used here. Seeds and division are both valid ways to propagate chives; division keeps this first project simple.

Harvesting and dividing chives
Take a small harvest at a time

Keep scissors near the kitchen door and cut what you will use. Leaving foliage on a young clump helps it establish before heavier harvests.

Divide a crowded clump

A 3-gallon pot gives one starting clump room to expand. Lift and divide an established clump when it fills the space, keeping a rooted piece for this pot.

Sources, dates & detailed PDF

Editorial plans, not results from a Plant Care Steps growing trial. Compiled with AI assistance; they have not yet had an independent horticultural review. Editorial approach.

Something needs updating? Suggest a correction

Published · Updated

By jennyzhuang

Sources checked View sources ↗

Detailed PDF ↓

Full reference edition with expanded explanations and illustrations. Its publication dates appear in the file.

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Soil: Miracle-Gro Organic Potting Mix (US, feeds for up to 2 months)

By jennyzhuang

Sources checked View sources ↗

Published · Updated

Read the online Sources section for linked references and the full reference PDF.

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Plant Care Steps · Care card

Chives

Allium schoenoprasum

Water
Check each morning. Water when the top inch is dry, then let the pot finish draining.
Light
Sun or part shade. Choose a bright outdoor spot for steady leaf growth.
Temperature
Perennial herb. A bright patio pot close to the kitchen
Common problems
Are these the same as garlic chives. No. This plan uses common chives with hollow, round leaves. Garlic chives are a different species with flatter leaves and a different flavor.