When should chives be transplanted, and can they be grown without soil?

Chives are a vegetable with a distinctive smell, and consumers vary in how much they accept it; some love eating them, while others cannot stand the smell. Chives are grown in every part of our country and have a very high adaptability to the environment, making them a very suitable vegetable for lazy gardeners. So when should chives generally be transplanted? Can they be grown without soil?

1. When should chives generally be transplanted?

Transplanting chives is a very critical step, and the timing of transplanting should be determined by the growth condition of the chives as well as when they were planted. Generally, if the chives were planted in March or April in spring, by the time they have grown to about 18 cm, with four to five leaves, vigorous growth and strong roots, they can be transplanted.

If the chives were planted in early summer of the same year, they are generally transplanted after about two months of growth, and it is best to transplant after the rainy season to avoid transplanting during the rainy season, which can cause the chive seedlings to rot at the roots.

If the chives were sown in autumn, transplanting in the same year is generally not recommended, because the temperature is lower at transplanting time, the roots of the chive seedlings do not easily survive, and the low temperatures during the seedling growth period mean the seedlings are not sturdy enough. So it is best to wait until early spring of the following year to transplant, when the survival rate is somewhat higher.

Before transplanting, it is best to water the seedbed thoroughly to avoid damaging the roots when lifting the chives. After lifting the seedlings, trim the fibrous roots at the base of the chives, keeping about 5 cm of root. The leaves also need to be trimmed: cut away the yellow and rotten leaves and keep the chive seedlings at about 15 cm, to avoid loss of nutrients.

2. Can chives be grown without soil?

Chives can be grown without soil, and the specific growing method is as follows:

First, preparing the growing container and mixing the nutrient solution. At present, the containers used for soilless cultivation of chives are either custom-made by a factory or homemade. Making them yourself is very simple: buy sturdy 4-6 cm thick foam boards and a rectangular plastic water basin. Holes can be made in the foam with an electric hole punch, with a hole diameter of 3-4 cm, and a row spacing of 18×12 cm is suitable. The growing trough (basin) depends on what finished products are available. To prepare the nutrient solution: 15 grams of urea, 22.5 grams of monopotassium phosphate, 15 kg of water, with a pH between 5.8 and 6.8.

Second, selecting and handling the chive seedlings. Dig up the chive seedlings, wash off the soil, and use scissors to cut away aged and damaged roots as well as withered and rotting leaves. Put 5-8 plants per clump into the round holes of the foam floating board, fix them with crushed foam, and then place them on the nutrient solution. It is best if the surface of the nutrient solution just touches the chive roots, or the water surface is about 1 cm lower, so that the chive roots grow down into the nutrient solution on their own, giving the chives an artificial acclimation process.

Third, cultivation management. After the chives are set up on the bed, water with clear water once every other day, and spray foliar fertilizer once every other day, alternating clear water and foliar fertilizer. For the foliar fertilizer, spray a dilute solution of 1% urea and 0.2% monopotassium phosphate until the chives begin to grow. In spring and autumn, water once a week and spray foliar fertilizer once a week; in summer, do each twice; in winter, 1-2 times every two weeks. Generally, add nutrient solution once a week, with the roots submerged 1-2 cm, which is suitable. The optimum temperature for soilless cultivation of chives is between 15-25°C, making it suitable for greenhouse or polytunnel growing. Light intensity should be moderate, with no direct light, but there must be plenty of scattered light. In hot weather, maintain ventilation and cooling, keep the temperature below 25°C, and ensure good ventilation and air exchange. When it is hot, you can water and spray water to cool things down and avoid scorching the leaves.