Delphinium

Pests & beneficial insects

🐛 Prone to: Aphids

Aphids

Aphididae

Curled leaves, sticky honeydew and ants on patrol — usually with something already eating them.

, Caterpillars

Caterpillars

Lepidoptera larvae

Holes, droppings, and a pest you can simply pick off by hand.

.

Attract Hoverflies

Hoverflies

Syrphidae

The adults only drink nectar. It is the larvae that eat the aphids.

, Lacewings

Lacewings

Chrysopidae

Golden-eyed adults that mostly drink; larvae that hunt like small alligators.

, Ladybugs

Ladybugs

Coccinellidae

The one predator here where the adults hunt as hard as the larvae do.

, Parasitic wasps

Parasitic wasps

Braconidae, Ichneumonidae and relatives

Pinhead-sized, stingless, and lethal to aphids and caterpillars from the inside.

to keep them in check — plant African MarigoldGreat, LungwortGreat and Belgian EndiveGood nearby.

Growing from seed

Start Delphinium indoors about 8 weeks before your last frost, keeping seeds in cooler soil (around 10–18 °C). Seeds usually come up in around 21 days. Move seedlings out once the danger of frost has passed, in full sun, spaced about 60 cm apart. Expect the first blooms in roughly 120 days.

Keep track of the seeds you own.

Companion Planting

• 
  Wild Garlic
  

  Wild GarlicGreat pair

  • ❧Wild Garlic attracts Hoverflies, which prey on the Aphids that attack Delphinium
  • ❧Wild Garlic acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Delphinium
  • ❧Delphinium gives Wild Garlic sheltering shade in the heat of summer
• 
  African Marigold
  

  African MarigoldGreat pair

  • ❧African Marigold attracts Hoverflies and Lacewings and more, which prey on the Aphids that attack Delphinium
  • ❧African Marigold suppresses pests that trouble Delphinium
  • ❧Delphinium draws Bumblebees and Butterflies and more that improve pollination for both
• 
  English bluebell
  

  English bluebellGreat pair

  • ❧Delphinium draws Bumblebees and Butterflies that improve pollination for both
  • ❧English bluebell acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Delphinium
  • ❧Delphinium gives English bluebell sheltering shade in the heat of summer

How to grow Delphinium

1. Sow8 weeks before frost
2. Germinates21 days
3. Space60 cm apart
4. GrowFull sun
5. Harvest~120 days

Water: Medium · Height: 180 cm · Soil: Rich, moist, well-draining, slightly alkaline