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Delphinium seedlings

AndymanAndyman Posts: 39
in Plants
I collected some seeds from one of my Delphiniums about a month ago and I've stored most of them for sowing next spring, but I had so many seeds that I decided to try sowing some immediately, and now I've got about a dozen seedlings which are each just showing their first true leaf. They were all sown in a tray with individual plastic cells and they're currently growing happily on the patio table which is safe from slugs and snails.
Can anyone give me some advice on the best way to care for them over the winter please?
Should I prick them out into small plant pots or leave them to grow on in their cells?
Should I leave them outside in a sheltered position away from slugs and snails, or bring them into the unheated conservatory, or even put them on a window ledge in the house? 
I know that Delphiniums are quite hardy when established, but I don't think that they'll grow strong enough to plant out before the winter. I'm in NE England.

Posts

  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    How big are the cells? If the roots fill them out in the next couple of weeks I would pot them on (but not too big a pot, maybe 3"). If they don't I would leave them in the cells and pot on in spring when they start to grow. Here I would leave young perennials outside in a sheltered spot on the shelves from an old blowaway, but you're a smidge further north than I am.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • AndymanAndyman Posts: 39
    Thanks JennyJ. 
    The cells are 5cm square and I don't think that the roots are likely to fill them before the winter. I'll be moving the patio table under a garden gazebo in the next couple of weeks so I could try overwintering the young plants in there. The gazebo has open sides and front so it isn't weatherproof, but it does have a roof which will at least offer some protection from the winter wet. I'm just south of the River Tees in North Yorkshire.
  • AndymanAndyman Posts: 39
    The seedlings in their cells were successfully brought through the winter in the gazebo and most of them survived. I potted them individually into 3" pots in the spring and I now have several healthy looking plants that will be planted into the border at some stage during the next few weeks.  
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