How To Harvest Chives Without Killing The Plant

Chives are a nice addition to your herb garden and are one of the first perennials up and ready to harvest in the early spring. When left to flower the chive plant adds a nice decorative pinkish purplish flower that is pretty and can be added to a bouquet.

Chives are one of my favorite hardy perennial herbs to grow and since they are cold hardy they do well in my colder climate. Your chives are up and now you wondering when and how to harvest chives without killing the plant. Read along in this post as I show you how to harvest your chives so they keep growing and how to store your fresh chives for use.

How To Harvest Chives Without Killing The Plant

When to harvest chives

With newly transplanted chive plants you should wait a month or so before harvesting any of the plants. This gives it time to establish the root growth and start growing. If you have sowed chive seeds then you will want to wait till the leaves are up at least 6 inches tall.

If your chive plant is established then you can start picking leaves soon after it is up in the spring. It is best to pick the chive leaves before the flower begins as the stock becomes tougher the older it gets. If you have garlic chives you will use the same method as regular chives to harvest them.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Find our full disclosure here. 

How to Harvest chives

To harvest chives, simply grab a few of the stems and pinch off what you need for your meal. You will want to pinch the leaves off close to the bottom as this encourages new growth so that your chive plant will grow back. It is best to pick it uniformly so that when the chive plant starts to grow back there won’t be hard mature stems in the way.

I usually bring in a handful at a time to use so I use my kitchen shears or a sharp pair of scissors and cut a bunch of leaves an inch or so from the bottom of my main plant.

You will want to cut the outer portion of the plant first rather than start cutting in the middle of the plant. Place your freshly cut chives in the shade if you are not going in right away because they wilt very quickly in the heat.

How To Harvest Garlic Chives

If you are growing garlic chives in addition to growing regular chives you would follow the same harvesting procedure as above for regular chives.

How Often Can You Harvest Chives

All season long! Chives have a long harvest period and grow back quickly after harvesting which makes them a favorite to add to your herb or vegetable garden. I keep harvesting mine until the cold weather hits in the fall and then my whole plant dies back until springtime. If you live in a warmer climate then of course you will be able to enjoy your harvests even longer.

How To Store Chives

I like to store my chives in the type of container shown below. I find that my chives will keep for up to a week or longer stored in the fridge that way.  My garden where I have my chives planted is a ways away from the house so it is nice to grab fresh chives when I need them.

You can also store your chives upright in a glass jar with a bit of water on the bottom as well. You can also store freshly picked chives in a plastic bag as well. You may or may not want to wash your freshly picked chives before using and storing them. Because they stand upright away from the dirt there usually is no need to. I did wash mine the other day because of the heavy pollen floating in the air, I just held them under my tap, rinsed, and blotted dry with a towel.

How To Use Fresh Chives

Freshly picked chives can be used anywhere a mild light onion flavor is desired or to replace green onions. They are deliciously sprinkled on top of tossed or pasta salads. I add them to my spinach egg omelets. My son loves when I add a handful of chives into the dill mashed potatoes I make. Our favorite is adding some freshly chopped chives to our homemade ramen noodle soup.

If you grow garlic chives then you will also get a hint of garlic flavor added to your dish as well. So yummy! If you have an abundance of chives to use up then you can preserve them to use later such as using a food dehydrator to dry and store for later use.

FAQS About Harvesting Chives

What happens if my chive plant goes to flower?

This just means that your chive plant is getting ready to go to seed. You can use your chive flowers or let them go to seed so you have more chives the next year or cut the entire plant back and it will grow new leaves ready to use in a couple of weeks.

Are chive flowers edible?

Yes, chive flowers are edible and can be used to decorate your salad bowls or sprinkle them on top of your favorite dishes. They are a bit milder than the chive leaves. They look lovely on top of potato salad.

Should I let my chive plant flower?

Only let your chive plant go to flower if you want more seeds to plant or give away to friends. Otherwise, you will want to cut back your chive plant before it flowers as each flower contains a lot of individual chive seeds.

Now you know how to harvest chives without killing the plant and can enjoy your fresh chives all season long! Enjoy.

More helpful articles on growing and harvesting herbs:

• How to grow basil from seed