Yes, but only indoors. I set a pot of Grolau chives on my south-facing kitchen windowsill, and all through January it stayed green and ready to snip for eggs and soup. The garden clump three steps outside the door had vanished, flattened under a crust of frost. That gap is the whole answer to growing chives in winter: the plant keeps going when you bring it inside, and it quits when you leave it out. So if you want fresh chives in the cold months, you grow them on a windowsill, not in the yard.
Your outdoor chives are not dead in the cold months. They go dormant. The leaves yellow, collapse, and break down, while the bulb-like roots rest underground and wait for warmth. This is normal and healthy, so do not dig them up in a panic. Overwintering chives in the open garden means letting them sleep, not forcing green growth from a plant that wants to nap. You will see nothing on top until spring, and that is exactly what you want. The rest is what lets them come back strong when the soil warms up.
Real winter growth happens inside, where the plant gets the warmth and light it cannot find outdoors. Indoor chives need a bright spot more than anything else you can give them. Put your pot on the brightest south-facing window in the house so it soaks up every hour of weak winter sun. A north window leaves the leaves thin, pale, and floppy, so skip it if you have any other choice. If your sunniest window still feels dim, a small grow light over the pot fills the gap and keeps the leaves stocky.
Pick the right variety and your job gets much easier. Grolau is a Swiss type bred for forcing and indoor pots, with thick, dark leaves that bounce back fast after you trim them. Regular garden chives work too, but a forcing variety like Grolau gives you more to cut from a small container. Use a wide pot rather than a deep one, since chives grow in clumps and like room to spread their roots out sideways. A pot about six inches across suits one good division.
Spring
Outdoor clumps push up fresh green spears and growth speeds up; the best time to plant or divide.
Summer
Plants bloom and grow strongly; harvest often and deadhead spent flowers to prevent self-seeding.
Fall
Growth slows as nights cool; pot up a division to bring indoors for winter harvests.
Winter
Outdoor chives go dormant underground, while a windowsill pot keeps producing fresh leaves.
Timing your move matters more than most people think. Pot up a division in fall, before the first hard frost knocks the outdoor clump down. Dig a fist-size chunk from an established plant, set it in fresh potting mix, and water it in well. Some growers chill the pot outside for a few weeks first, which mimics a short rest and wakes the plant up stronger once it comes into the warm kitchen. I checked mine after that cold spell, and the new spears came up faster and stood up straighter than the ones I rushed straight indoors.
Then go easy once your pot is inside. Water only when the top inch feels dry, since indoor pots dry out far slower than garden soil and soggy roots will rot. Harvest with a light hand through the dark months. Cut no more than a third of the leaves at once, and snip from the outside of the clump so the center keeps feeding the plant. Push it too hard and you drain the plant before spring, right when you want it strongest. Treat your pot gently now and you get fresh chives on toast in February while the yard outside is still frozen solid.
Read the full article: Chives Plant: A Complete Growing Guide
