When to plant Chives in Temperate Australia

Temperate zone — applies to Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Newcastle and similar areas. Growing elsewhere? Cool · Subtropical · Tropical · Arid.

Sow chives direct in temperate Australia from September right through to March — the seed goes straight into the garden about 5 mm deep, no transplanting needed. Chives are a hardy perennial herb that suits pots, borders and vegie-bed edges alike, wanting full sun to light shade and steady moisture while young. Be patient early on: germination takes 14–21 days, and a clump needs 80–90 days before it can handle regular cutting. After that, one sowing feeds you for years — snip the leaves a couple of centimetres above the soil and they regrow within weeks.

Sowing calendar — temperate zone

Green months are your sowing window: September to March.

Growing notes

Fully hardy, chives take temperate winters in their stride. Frosts between May and mid-October won't kill an established clump — the tops may yellow and die back in a cold winter, but the bulbs reshoot as soon as spring warms up.

Early spring sowings into still-cool soil germinate at the slow end of the 14–21 day range, so don't panic if nothing shows for three weeks. Late summer (February–March) is arguably the sweet spot: warm soil speeds germination and clumps have time to settle in before winter.

Give them free-draining soil with a little compost worked in, and keep the surface consistently moist through the whole germination stretch — the most common failure with chives is letting the seedbed dry out around day ten and concluding the seed was a dud. The second is weeding out your own crop, because chive seedlings look exactly like blades of grass; sow in a clearly marked row. Spacing is flexible at 3–20 cm — sow thickly and thin the extras straight into the kitchen.

• Cut with scissors 2 cm above soil level rather than pulling, so the bulbs stay anchored
• Divide congested clumps every few years in early spring
• The mauve flowers are edible and good for bees, but removing them keeps leaf production up
• Pot-grown clumps dry out faster than garden ones, so water more often

Chives at a glance

Companion planting

Grows well with

Basil: Deters aphids from nearby plants

Carrot: Deters carrot fly with strong scent

Lettuce: Deters aphids

Keep away from

Bean (Bush): Alliums inhibit bean growth

Bean (Bush): Alliums inhibit nitrogen-fixing bacteria in bean roots

Common questions

When should I plant chives in Australia?

In temperate zones, sow chives direct from September through to March. Seed goes about 5 mm deep and germinates in 14–21 days, so both spring and late summer work well.

Why haven't my chive seeds come up?

Chives are slow — allow the full 14–21 days before judging, and keep the seedbed moist the whole time. Also check you haven't weeded the seedlings out, as they look just like grass.

Do chives die back in winter?

In colder temperate areas the tops can yellow and die down after frost, but chives are fully hardy and the clump reshoots in spring. In milder spots they keep growing year-round.

How long do chives take to grow?

Around 80–90 days from sowing to a clump sturdy enough for regular cutting. Once established, regrowth after each cut takes only a few weeks.

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