How to Fertilize Chives Grown at Home? A Detailed Guide to the Method

Chives love fertilizer most. If you want to grow chives well, after understanding the growth characteristics and patterns of chives, you need to apply fertilizer skillfully at the right time and in the right amount during the growth process of chives.

In each growth stage of chives, the amount of fertilizer needed is different. Given the perennial characteristics of chives, we should pay even more attention to arranging the fertilizer amount for each special stage. The fertilization pattern for chives: during the seedling stage, the growth amount and fertilizer consumption are relatively small, but during the peak vegetative growth period, especially in the spring and autumn harvest seasons, the growth amount and fertilizer demand are large, so large amounts of fertilizer should be applied in stages. Chives 2 to 4 years old grow vigorously, have strong tillering ability, and high yield, and their fertilizer demand is the greatest, making this the peak period of fertilizer need. Chives over 5 years old gradually enter the aging stage. To prevent premature aging, fertilization needs to be strengthened. After the seedlings emerge and true leaves unfold, the root system gradually increases. When the seedlings have 2-3 true leaves, a seedling-promoting fertilizer can be applied once, and watering should be done promptly after fertilization. When the seedlings have 4-5 leaves, fertilizer can be applied once more. The amount of fertilizer is basically the same as the first topdressing. During the seedling stage, fertilizer can be applied once about every 20 days, and drainage to prevent waterlogging is also needed, keeping the seedbed surface alternating between dry and moist.

Chives have strong adaptability to soil. Sandy soil, loam, and clay soil can all be used for planting, but soil with a deep soil layer, loose plow layer, and fertility is best. Chives need a large amount of nitrogen and should be combined with an appropriate amount of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer to improve the yield and quality of the main edible parts, the leaves and leaf sheaths. Applying sufficient base fertilizer is very important for growing chives. Generally, it is applied when preparing the land and making beds. We can buy decomposed organic fertilizers such as chicken manure and cow manure and apply them into the soil as base fertilizer before transplanting. Timely topdressing: topdressing only begins after transplanting and survival, applying once every 5—6 days until harvest begins, and after that, fertilizer can be applied once or twice after each harvest. Do not fertilize during bolting; fertilize after flowering to promote tillering. As for fertilization time, apply once each year when harvesting of chives is stopped, and when chives sprout 2 to 4 cm, apply organic fertilizer once in combination with cultivating the soil. When fertilizing, nitrogen fertilizer alone cannot be used. The timing should be controlled to 3 to 4 days after each chive harvest, after new leaves have grown. Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium should be fully mixed before application. Chives like human manure. When growing them in a yard, those who have the conditions can consider it, such as a baby's urine and feces. Ferment it in a bucket for 2 months, then use it for topdressing after transplanting and survival, applying once every 5—6 days, with the concentration gradually increasing from 10% manure water to 50%. Fertilizer can be applied 1-2 times after each harvest. Other organic fertilizers, such as kitchen waste, are also good fertilizers, and among them earthworm fertilizer is the best. The best fertilizer for growing chives is soybeans. I saw an elderly man who bought 1 kg of soybeans, soaked them in boiling water, then dug a relatively deep small hole in the ground, grabbed a handful of soaked soybeans and put them in, then covered the soybeans with mud, leaving a small hole 1-2 cm deep, put in chive seeds, then covered it flat with mud and watered it a little. The chives he grew were really plump, wide, long, and firm.