Oregon · Washington · Idaho

When to plant chives

Plant in the garden: Portland and Seattle Mar 15 – May 10; Spokane Apr 15 – Jun 10; Boise Apr 1 – May 27; Bend May 12 – Jul 7.

Chives are the smallest onion-family plant, grown for slender, hollow leaves with a mild onion flavor, snipped over eggs, potatoes and soups. The round lavender flowers are edible and popular with bees. Garlic chives are a related plant with flat leaves, white flowers and a garlicky taste.

Add to my garden plan

Puts chives on your free plan, with dates for your town and a spot in your beds.

Difficulty: Easy
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Spacing: 8 to 12 inches apart
Planting depth: ¼ inch deep
Frost: Handles light frost
First harvest: About 60 days after planting

A tough perennial that comes back every spring. Divide clumps every few years.

Chive planting dates

Towns	Start seeds indoors	Plant in the garden
Portland, OR, Seattle and Tacoma, WA	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10
Spokane, WA	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10
Boise and Meridian, ID, Astoria, OR	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Bend and Redmond, OR	Mar 17–31	May 12 – Jul 7

Dates for six main cities. For any of the other 80 towns, type it in the box at the top of the page or browse all towns.

Gresham, OR, Oregon City and West Linn, OR, Portland, OR, St. Helens and Scappoose, OR, Wilsonville and Canby, OR	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10
Hillsboro and Beaverton, OR	Jan 22 – Feb 5	Mar 19 – May 14

Corvallis and Albany, OR, Eugene, OR, Salem, OR	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10
Cottage Grove, OR	Jan 30 – Feb 13	Mar 27 – May 22
McMinnville and Newberg, OR	Jan 21 – Feb 4	Mar 18 – May 13

Ashland and Talent, OR	Feb 11–25	Apr 8 – Jun 3
Grants Pass, OR, Medford, OR, Roseburg, OR	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10

Astoria, OR, Brookings and Gold Beach, OR, Coos Bay and North Bend, OR, Newport and Lincoln City, OR, Tillamook, OR	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27

Bend and Redmond, OR, Klamath Falls, OR	Mar 17–31	May 12 – Jul 7
Burns, OR	Mar 19 – Apr 2	May 14 – Jul 9
Lakeview, OR	Mar 12–26	May 7 – Jul 2
Madras, OR	Feb 24 – Mar 10	Apr 21 – Jun 16
Prineville, OR	Mar 9–23	May 4 – Jun 29

Baker City, OR	Mar 2–16	Apr 27 – Jun 22
Enterprise and Joseph, OR	Mar 1–15	Apr 26 – Jun 21
Hermiston, OR, Hood River, OR, Ontario, OR, Pendleton, OR, The Dalles, OR	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
John Day, OR	Mar 5–19	Apr 30 – Jun 25
La Grande, OR	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10

Bremerton and Port Orchard, WA, Everett, WA, Kent, Renton and Auburn, WA, Seattle and Tacoma, WA	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10
Olympia, WA	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Shelton, WA	Feb 2–16	Mar 30 – May 25

Anacortes, WA, Bellingham, WA, Friday Harbor and the San Juans, WA, Mount Vernon and Burlington, WA, Oak Harbor and Whidbey Island, WA	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10

Aberdeen and Hoquiam, WA, Forks, WA, Long Beach and Ilwaco, WA	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Port Angeles, WA, Port Townsend, WA	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10
Sequim, WA	Jan 27 – Feb 10	Mar 24 – May 19

Centralia and Chehalis, WA	Jan 28 – Feb 11	Mar 25 – May 20
Longview and Kelso, WA, Vancouver, WA	Jan 18 – Feb 1	Mar 15 – May 10

Chelan, WA, Wenatchee, WA	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Leavenworth, WA, Omak and Okanogan, WA	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10
Winthrop and Twisp, WA	Feb 20 – Mar 6	Apr 17 – Jun 12

Ellensburg, WA	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10
Ephrata and Quincy, WA, Moses Lake, WA, Tri-Cities (Pasco, Kennewick, Richland), WA, Walla Walla, WA	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Goldendale, WA	Feb 24 – Mar 10	Apr 21 – Jun 16
Sunnyside, Grandview and Prosser, WA	Feb 6–20	Apr 3 – May 29
Yakima, WA	Feb 13–27	Apr 10 – Jun 5

Colville, WA, Pullman, WA, Spokane, WA	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10

Bonners Ferry, ID, Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls, ID, Sandpoint, ID	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10

Lewiston, ID	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Moscow, ID	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10

Boise and Meridian, ID, Nampa and Caldwell, ID	Feb 4–18	Apr 1 – May 27
Emmett, ID	Feb 5–19	Apr 2 – May 28
McCall, ID	Mar 30 – Apr 13	May 25 – Jul 20

Burley and Rupert, ID, Idaho Falls, ID, Pocatello, ID, Rexburg, ID, Twin Falls, ID	Feb 18 – Mar 4	Apr 15 – Jun 10
Salmon, ID	Feb 22 – Mar 8	Apr 19 – Jun 14

Chive year at a glance

Task	J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O
Start indoors	Jan	Feb
Plant			Mar	Apr	May
Harvest			Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct
In bloom					May	Jun

Around Portland. Colder towns, especially east of the Cascades, run a few weeks later; the table above has your town's planting dates.

How to grow chives

Start seeds indoors on your city's dates in trays or small pots under a grow light or in your sunniest window. Or skip this step and buy young plants (starts) at a garden center.
Harden off the young plants: about a week before planting, set them outside for a few hours a day, a little longer each day.
Plant them in the garden on your city's dates, 8 to 12 inches apart. If you plant seeds instead, sow them ¼ inch deep.
Water deeply once or twice a week rather than a little every day, and mulch once the soil is warm.
Harvest: Snip leaves an inch above the soil whenever you need them. The purple flowers are edible too.

Growing chives in your part of the Northwest

The same plant behaves differently on the wet west side, the foggy coast and the dry, colder east side.

West-side valleys

Willamette Valley, Puget Sound, southern Oregon

Chives are hardy and easy here. Divide clumps every few years.

East of the Cascades

Columbia Basin, Yakima, Boise, Spokane, north Idaho

Chives handle cold winters and hot summers. Water during dry spells.

High desert and mountain towns

Central Oregon, high eastern Oregon valleys, McCall, Salmon

Chives are hardy enough for the coldest winters in the region and come up as soon as snow melts.

More chive varieties

More widely sold picks that do well somewhere in the Northwest. The tag says which part of the Northwest suits each one best.

Common chives

Onion chives

Slender, hollow leaves with a mild onion flavor and edible purple flowers. Tough and fully hardy, it comes back every spring with almost no care.

Both sides

Garlic chives

Flat-leaf, garlic flavor

Flat leaves with a mild garlic flavor and white, star-shaped late-summer flowers that bees love. Cut off flower heads before seeds drop, or it will self-sow.

Both sides

Staro

Thick-leaf onion chives

Thicker, sturdier leaves than common chives, with good flavor. The leaves hold up well for freezing or drying. Divide clumps every few years to keep them vigorous.

Both sides

Purly

Upright onion chives

Tall, upright, thick leaves that stand up straight for easy cutting. Quick to regrow after cutting and productive. A good choice for a busy kitchen garden.

Both sides

Forescate

Pink-flowered onion chives

Rose-pink flowers instead of the usual lavender, plus the same mild onion leaves. A pretty, hardy edging plant. The flowers are edible too.

Both sides

How much to grow

How many to plant

One or two clumps are enough for most households. Divide a clump every few years to make more.

What to expect

Snip a handful a week from each clump from early spring to fall.

Storing the harvest

Best fresh. Freeze chopped chives in a jar; dried chives lose most of their flavor.

Key numbers

60–70°FSoil to sprout
6.0–7.0Soil pH
Every 3–4 yearsDivide
Well below 0°FHardy to

Top care tip: Cut clumps back to 2 inches a few times a season to keep leaves tender and fresh.

Growing notes

What makes the difference in Northwest gardens, in plain language.

Getting started

Chives grow easily from seed, but they're slow at first, so many gardeners start seeds indoors or buy a small plant. A friend's clump is even better: a few bulbs dug from an established plant take off right away. Chives like ordinary garden soil with some compost, steady moisture and at least half a day of sun.

They're fully hardy everywhere in the Northwest. The leaves die back in a hard freeze and return early in spring, often the first fresh herb of the year.

Cutting and flowers

Cut leaves near the base rather than snipping the tips; tip-cut leaves turn brown and ragged. After the purple flowers fade in early summer, shear the whole clump to a couple of inches above the soil. It regrows fresh, tender leaves within a few weeks.

Removing spent flowers also stops self-seeding. Common chives seed around a bit, and garlic chives, with their flat leaves and white late-summer flowers, can seed aggressively if left alone.

Keeping chives for winter

Chives lose most of their flavor when dried. Freezing works much better: chop fresh leaves, spread them on a tray to freeze, then store them in a jar or bag in the freezer and use them straight from frozen. A pot of chives on a bright windowsill also gives small cuttings through winter.

Pests are rare, though onion thrips can cause silvery streaks on leaves in hot, dry eastern summers. A spray of water helps.

Good neighbors

Strawberries and carrots. The purple flowers draw bees early in the season.
Other perennial herbs. Share a permanent bed that doesn't get dug every year.

Pests and problems

What most often goes wrong with chives in Northwest gardens, how to spot it and what to do.

Crowded clumps

Signs: Thin, weak leaves after a few years.

What to do: Dig and divide in spring.

Onion thrips

Signs: Silvery streaks on the leaves in hot weather.

What to do: Cut the clump back to 2 inches and water; fresh leaves follow.

Seedlings everywhere

Signs: Chives come up all over the bed.

What to do: Cut off flowers after they fade, before seeds drop.

Common questions about growing chives

When should I plant chives in Oregon, Washington and Idaho?

Plant in the garden: Mar 15 – May 10 in Portland and Seattle, Apr 15 – Jun 10 in Spokane, Apr 1 – May 27 in Boise and May 12 – Jul 7 in Bend. Pick your town at the top of the page for your own dates.

Should I let my chives flower?

You can. The flowers are edible and loved by bees. Cut them off once they fade, though, to keep the plant from seeding all over and to get a fresh flush of leaves.

What's the difference between chives and garlic chives?

Common chives have hollow, round leaves, purple spring flowers and a mild onion flavor. Garlic chives have flat leaves, white late-summer flowers and a garlicky taste. Both are hardy perennials grown the same way.

How do I preserve fresh chives?

Freeze them. Chop the leaves, freeze them spread out on a tray, then bag them. Dried chives keep their color but lose most of their flavor.

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