A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2005 Can Chives die?

I have a small pot of garlic chives, which I could have sworn I had killed for sure there was no green left a few times, but just add water and up they come again. I was wondering if it actually was possible to kill this herb

You know, I was wondering that myself. I got tons of chives in my herb bed and they do seem to keep coming back. Good thing because I love em!

If its a plant, you can kill it. However, chives (and garlic chives especailly) are more difficult to kill. You probably won't be able to kill them with neglect. Ok, if it's in a pot and you don't water it for more than a year, that will probably kill it.

If you want to get rid of it, you have to dig up the bulb. I don't know how it manages, but garlic chive works it way down 4-5 inches below the soil. If you don't get the roots, it will grow back, and whatever you do, don't let it go to seed.

just pour bleach on the chives daily. kills them pretty quickly.

my concern, and that of anyone else who gardens, is what the bleach does to the ground where the chives are growing. i don't think that is a good idea.

Vinegar will do the same job as the bleach but it is far more environmentally friendly.