|
Chives are a member of the onion family. They are easy to grow from seed. Seeds can be sown thinly directly into a finely raked, moist, warm soil about 1/2 in deep. From March to June and your crop should be ready for picking or enjoying their cornflower like bloom of pink from mid-July to early November. If you do not over harvest these will re-seed themselves for years to come.
The leaves on Chives are cut from from the plant close to the ground. They have an onion flavour and can be used indifferent ways. When cooking a few chopped Chives can be used to garnishing or added to soups and stews. Leaves can be mixed in stir fry’s or mixed with fromage fray or soft cheese. If you do have an excess you can dry or freeze them for use during the winter months.
There is also a variety of chives that have a white flower head. Whereas the pink flowered chive plant grows to about 12 in high the white head variety grows to about 18 in. The best thing about this plant is that it tastes more like mild garlic. It’s leaves are a lot broader than it’s pink cousin and it is in flower about Autumn time. This plant looks great in a sunny spot.
Do feed these plants with liquid fertiliser in early February to give them an extra boost. Remember with all gardening you can only expect to get out what you put in so take good care of all of your plants and they should reward you with lovely blooms and fruits.
|
