Over Wintering Dephiniums

Hi All

These are a few of my Delphinium's grown from seed.
Do you think they are OK to plant out now or overwinter them
in a cold frame. What is the general thoughts on this.

 

Hi @Humberboy are they actually delphinium or the annual version (larkspur)? The leaves look more dissected like the annuals.
Anyway I think they're too small to go out. Slugs would have them for breakfast and be asking for more

 

Hi CarolineL
that is very interesting as the Packet reads Delphinium Red but I was thinking that the leaves were different. If they are Larkspur as you say then that is great as I have always had problems trying to germinate Larkspur. But I will keep them in the cold frame and hope for the best.

 

Surely somewhere on the packet they should tell you HA or HP. (Probably hidden in a corner)
I keep trying delphiniums but the Force is too strong with my slugs... So I wish you good luck (and they get into cold frames too, so be warned)

 

There seems to be several 'Red' types but all with a fuller name like Red Lark or Red Cap, do you have the name of the supplier on the seed packet ?

@CarolineL usually find putting a ring of Copper Tape on the soil around where the new years shoots are going to emerge seems to keep our slugs and snails off.
Same with the Runner Beans, a few rings of it around the lower stems and canes works well.

 

Thanks @ricky101 - I might do that, though I plant so densely that they would probably abseil from adjacent plants! I've got some old copper edging that used to be used for door draught strip - is that tall enough at 3-4 cm?

 

Looking at your pic. my feeling is the plants are larkspur. The foliage seems too dissected for them to be delphiniums. If they are larkspur you will have difficulty keeping them until next year but you may be lucky. I think they are classified as annuals so frost/cold tender.
The only way I could overwinter delphiniums was to put slug pellets around the root balls in late winter as slugs, especially the keel slug, will eat the new shoots just below soil level as soon as they break from the mother plant. With the milder winters we have been having it was a hopeless fight so I gave up growing them because stone walls and earth banks surround my current garden. Slug Utopia.

 

Would think so, we use the Doff Slug tape which is about 25mm wide.

Like @Goldenlily26 mentions adding some slug pellets as well, though cannot get them in very deep without damaging the roots.
Think we might try drenching them with Garilc water as well in Spring, though some of our established ones seem to sprout in late Autmn these days and survive the mild winters.