How to Grow Organic Chives Indoors

Organic chives grow readily indoors in a sunny window.

Chives, part of the onion family, are a common addition to outside herb gardens. Growing chives organically can produce a bountiful harvest of this mild herb with enhanced flavor from the organic growing methods. Chives also make an especially suitable indoor herb because they grow easily in a sunny windowsill with little encouragement and care. Grow organic chives indoors for an attractive kitchen herb, providing flavorful snippets for adding to soups and salads.

Things You'll Need

• 6-inch growing container with drainage hole
• Square of screen
• Organic potting soil
• Organic chive seeds
• Spray bottle
• Grow light (optional)
• Scissors
• Organic compost

Instructions

1. Cover the bottom of the growing container with a small square of screen to prevent soil from escaping out the drainage hole as you water the chives.

2. Fill the growing container to the top with organic potting soil.

3. Place chives seeds onto the top of the soil, spacing the seeds 1 inch apart. Cover the seeds with about 1/4 inch of potting soil.

4. Saturate the soil evenly with water from a spray bottle.

5. Place the container in a sunny window or beneath a grow light. Provide at least six hours of sunlight or artificial light out of every 24-hour period.

6. Keep the soil evenly moist while the seeds germinate in approximately seven to 10 days.

7. Allow the chive plants to grow without trimming for approximately three months. After this time, you can harvest chives as you need them by simply trimming the ends of the plants with scissors.

8. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup organic compost around the outer perimeter of the planting container once a month to add continuous nourishment to the chive plants.

9. Keep the soil evenly moist and continue the same lighting conditions and the chives will thrive indoors indefinitely.

Tips & Warnings

• Harvest a few chive blossoms by clipping them off with scissors. Chive blossoms add a delightful oniony essence to salads.

References

• Virginia Cooperative Extension: Vegetable Gardening in Containers