Chives

Grow chives, Allium schoenoprasum, from seeds if you like, or start them as transplants.

A member of the onion tribe but easier to grow than garlic or shallots, chives have mild quills of bright-green and adorable purple spring flower heads (also edible) that make a nice low border, eight inches high. Actually a perennial bulb, chives can be invasive; if the flowers are left to ripen, they'll scatter vigorous seeds to the four corners.

Avery recommends 'Profusion', a new variety of chives; it is a hardy plant that flowers but doesn't set seed. Dried chives in stores have been freeze-dried (removing moisture under a vacuum) to keep their color; otherwise, they fade to an unappetizing gray. Another way to preserve chives is to chop and blend them into butter, wrap properly, and freeze; this keeps indefinitely. As an alternative or even addition, you could try 'Grolau', a selection suited to indoor culture.