Why You Should Grow Chives Indoors

I’ve had houseplants for many years, but I never really considered myself an indoor gardener. While I do keep my plants alive, I push the boundaries quite a bit, sometimes forgetting to water them until they look utterly depleted. I’ve intentionally filled my apartment with low-maintenance houseplants—like pothos, money tree, and anthurium (my favorite)—that can deal with a decent amount of neglect, so this isn’t a big problem. But true indoor gardeners, in my mind, keep plants not only alive but thriving, and they know how to care for herbs and flowers. So, I didn’t think that could be me—until I got a chive plant.

Owning a chive plant has brought me so much joy and it’s increased my confidence in my houseplant caretaking. Not only do I get to watch this easy-care plant grow whimsical, upright leaves at an impressive speed, but then I get to harvest those leaves and use them in the kitchen. I’ve never felt so resourceful. For anyone who has a sunny spot in their home, and is looking to get into growing herbs indoors, I highly recommending getting a chive plant.

Indoor Chive Plant Care

If you’re anything like me, you may also have considered herbs to be in an advanced level of owning houseplants. However, getting a chive plant can really change that perception, because they’re quite easy to maintain.

The most important thing for keeping an indoor chive plant alive is a good amount of sunlight. Chives need six to eight hours of sunlight, so a sunny, south-facing window is the best option.

For watering, chives like moist soil, so they should be watered when the soil is dry to the touch on top. However, as with many plants, it’s important not to overwater, as this can cause root rot, so make sure to have good drainage in the pot and keep the plant from getting waterlogged.

Why I Love My Chive Plant

I’ll be honest, I had a bit of a hiccup when first starting out with my chive plant. Though I read that the plant preferred a south-facing window—which I have in my bedroom—I just wanted to try it out in my living room to add to my decor in that space. While my living room has north facing windows, it gets pretty good light during the day and I have several other plants that thrive in that room, so I thought it might be okay if I placed the chive plant right by the window. However, the healthy leaves quickly started flopping and drying up—and I was worried my plant was toast. But, once I moved it to the south-facing windowsill in my bedroom, things quickly turned back around.

While the overall volume of the plant was decreased from the lost leaves, the remaining leaves bounced back almost right away once they received full sunlight. With the sunlight conditions sorted out, I’ve been able to just focus on keeping the watering schedule relatively consistent. However, I’ll admit that I haven’t been perfect in this department either. I’ve let the soil dry out a bit more than I should here and there, but fortunately, the plant is resilient and has stayed happy even when I’ve gone away for a long weekend and left it unwatered.

Overall, though, simply having the chive plant in my houseplant collection has made me more inspired to be better at caring for my houseplants. Knowing that the chives aren’t just another houseplant but also a delicious food source has made me a more attentive plant parent—even if I don’t need to be.

I also cannot overstate the excitement I get when making a recipe that calls for chives and realizing I can just go harvest them from the little plant in my windowsill. I also love to use chives for simple, everyday cooking to level up my scrambled eggs or veggies. Plus, I’m a Midwesterner who grew up on an obscene amount of dairy-based dips, so I get a lot of pleasure from making sour cream and chive dip with chives from—I love to say this—my own indoor garden.

Owning a chive plant is so easy and rewarding that I would encourage everyone with a south-facing window to do it. Trust me, even if you don’t see yourself as much of an indoor gardener, you’ve got this.