How to Grow Garlic Chives (Chinese Flowering Leeks, Allium tuberosum)

Plant seeds in moist soil with good drainage, in full sun to part shade. Sow as soon as the seeds are ripe in the fall, or in a cold frame in the spring. Sow lightly, and thin to 12 inches apart on all sides when seedlings are 2” tall. Bulb clumps can be divided and planted in early spring.

Are garlic chives the same as Chinese chives?
Is garlic chives and Allium?
How do you grow Chinese chives from cuttings?
Can garlic chives be eaten raw?
How long does it take for garlic chives to mature?
Are garlic chives good for you?
Can I use regular chives instead of garlic chives?
What can I plant next to Chives?
What can you not plant with garlic chives?
Do garlic chives grow back every year?
Do chives come back year after year?

Are garlic chives the same as Chinese chives?

Both plants grow in grass-like clumps, but while the common chive foliage is tube-shaped and grass-green, a garlic chive is a flat, blue-green blade. ... You'll find garlic chives most often in Asian cookbooks; in fact, they are often called Chinese chives or Chinese leeks.

Is garlic chives and Allium?

Its scientific name of Allium tuberosum is indicative of its oniony roots and falls among the family Liliaceae. Unlike onions or other types of garlic, however, the fibrous bulb is not edible but is grown rather for its flowers and stems.

How do you grow Chinese chives from cuttings?

Directions:

Cut a 2-3 inch long stem and remove all of the leaves, except the ones on top.
Place the cuttings in a small glass bowl, making sure the waterline is below the leaves. Change the water every few days.
After a few weeks you should see new roots; at this point, you can plant it in soil.

Can garlic chives be eaten raw?

This chive is not meant to be eaten raw, but cook it properly and your dishes will dance. Garlic chives are an edible that are definitely more garlic than chives. ... They can also be blanched, stir-fried, or incorporated as part of a clear soup, in the same way you would use onion or garlic.

How long does it take for garlic chives to mature?

Chives produce edible stems all through the summer and into fall. Because stems are usually ready for harvest around the time of the first bloom in April, or when plants are 6 inches tall, chives usually take around three months to reach maturity.

Are garlic chives good for you?

Health Benefits

Garlic chives are rich in Vitamin C, which prevents from common cold and fever, also rich in riboflavin, potassium, vitamin A, iron, thiamin, and beta carotene. These elements help in blood count increase, maintaining blood pressure, and increasing immunity power.

Can I use regular chives instead of garlic chives?

You can use chives in place of garlic chives as long as you understand that it will not give you the garlic flavor. It provides only the light onion flavor with a subtle herbaceous note so you will need to use more of it to get the flavor intensity that you would get from garlic chives.

What can I plant next to Chives?

Chives grow well with just about anything. Grapes, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, eggplant, kohlrabi, mustard, peppers, potatoes, rhubarb, roses, squash, and strawberries all do better when growing near chives. Asparagus, beans, peas, and spinach, however, have a harder time growing when planted near chives.

What can you not plant with garlic chives?

Avoid putting garlic chives near asparagus, peas, spinach and beans, as they will compete for similar soil nutrients (3). Regular harvesting (by clipping the leaves of the plant) will promote more vigorous growth and spreading behavior.

Do garlic chives grow back every year?

Once established, A. tuberosum is very heat, cold and drought tolerant. Clumps should be lifted and divided about every 3 years to maintain vigor and blooming. Garlic chives grow best in full sun.

Do chives come back year after year?

It will grow back the following year. Wait to harvest your chives when the plant is at least six inches tall.