Grow by Season

When to Plant Chives

Start chives indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost, then plant them out from 3 weeks before to 1 week after your last frost.

Chives at a glance

Start indoors
6 to 8 weeks before your last frost
Plant out
from 3 weeks before to 1 week after your last frost
Time to harvest
30 to 60 days from planting out
Harvest lasts
about 24 weeks
Spacing
4 per square foot
Frost
Takes hard frosts
Comes back
Every year, as a perennial

Growing chives

Chives are an easy perennial that comes back each spring. Grow them in sun and well-drained soil, at the edge of a bed or in a pot by the kitchen door, and divide the clumps every few years to keep them vigorous.

Dates by hardiness zone

Typical dates for each zone; your ZIP code gives your own.

When to plant chives in each USDA hardiness zone
ZoneStart indoorsPlant outPick
Zone 3aApr 2–16May 7 – Jun 4Jun 6 – Oct 26
Zone 3bMar 22 – Apr 5Apr 26 – May 24May 26 – Nov 6
Zone 4aMar 17–31Apr 21 – May 19May 21 – Nov 5
Zone 4bMar 13–27Apr 17 – May 15May 17 – Nov 1
Zone 5aMar 8–22Apr 12 – May 10May 12 – Oct 27
Zone 5bMar 6–20Apr 10 – May 8May 10 – Oct 25
Zone 6aMar 4–18Apr 8 – May 6May 8 – Oct 23
Zone 6bFeb 26 – Mar 12Apr 2–30May 2 – Oct 17
Zone 7aFeb 19 – Mar 5Mar 26 – Apr 23Apr 25 – Oct 10
Zone 7bFeb 8–22Mar 15 – Apr 12Apr 14 – Sep 29
Zone 8aFeb 1–15Mar 8 – Apr 5Apr 7 – Sep 22
Zone 8bJan 20 – Feb 3Feb 24 – Mar 24Mar 26 – Sep 10
Zone 9aJan 5–19Feb 9 – Mar 9Mar 11 – Aug 26
Zone 9bDec 7–21Jan 11 – Feb 8Feb 10 – Jul 28
Zone 10aNov 29 – Dec 13Jan 3–31Feb 2 – Jul 20
Zones 10b–11bFrost is rare here, so plant chives in the cooler months and let the roots settle before summer heat.

Good neighbors

Keep apart from

Questions about chives

Do chives come back every year?

Yes. Chives are a hardy perennial: they die back in winter and return in spring. Divide big clumps every few years.

Can I grow chives indoors?

Yes, in a pot on a sunny windowsill. Snip them often and they keep making new leaves.

All 60 crops