There's
rosemary, that's for remembrance;
Pray,
love, remember:
and
there is pansies, that's for thoughts.
—Ophelia, William Shakespeare's Hamlet
And here's a bushel of
chives, that's for shame.
—Jay
When we first started a vegetable garden six years ago or
so, my neighbor asked if I would like some chives. Of course, that sounded
delightful, and she gave me a couple clumps.
I plopped them in the ground along the sidewalk where I had
planted a few other herbs for easy access to the backdoor. I had no idea at the
time that chives are the horticultural equivalent of rabbits: they multiply
like crazy and are more than happy to consume a garden.
The growth of the chives patch — it's a patch now — was a
little alarming at first, and I felt a bit ashamed for how little I was using
this bountiful crop. I would sprinkle a few chives on top of a frittata or in a
potato dish. But I have enough chives to open a dumpling stand at the Taste of
Chicago.
A few summers ago, I noticed a large swath of chives in the
landscaping around the Harris Theater in Millennium Park. They were quite
lovely in bloom. I'm not sure why I needed someone else's garden to validate my
own, but it was a comfort. I now embrace the chives, with no shame, as simply
another flowering perennial — and occasional herb.
I now plant the other herbs in raised beds. I've allowed the
chives to fill in most of the space beneath our crabapple tree and to blend in
with a few Johnson blue geraniums in the same space. They seem happy enough
together. Chives that show up where I don't want them are easy enough to pull
up.
While thumbing through a magazine at the doctor's office the
other day, I came across tips for the herb garden. The writer suggested
deadheading chives vigorously to keep them under control. It's a shame there
was no mention of not deadheading them to create a lovely, carefree flower
garden.
And chive flowers are edible, you know, like pansies.
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ReplyDeleteBesides the flowers being lovely in a salad, another nice idea is to acquire some inexpensive tall bottles and place some chives in there (long stems with the flowers attached), and then fill with a light vinegar of some sort (I like champagne). It's pretty, and mighty tasty on a salad! And the bottles make a nice little hostess gift or some such. #yourewelcome
ReplyDeleteAnother possible way to curtail your chive explosion is to plant some mint very nearby...
ReplyDelete