Darv....in OZ we have products by Feast Watson call Proof Tints in small 50 ml bottles...I am sure you must have similar products in the UK
I mix them to form stains that have beautiful warm earthy tones and the beauty is with each plank being individual, when they are lightly stained & polished the grain of each plank differs from the next....
Apart from hull planking I use the Proof Tints to stain steam components lagging ......
Most important thing is not to rely on the Manufacturers stained sample boards.....but to use actual off cuts of the same batch of timber you planked your hull with
Being relatively light in hue.........the planks will accept colour readily....but having said all of this ultimately it is up to you to decide ........to me if the original vessel was built with bare preserved planking it would be a sin to paint it...you could always use the colour/staining scheme as shown in the Manufacturers image....
May seem a little laborious.......but why not assemble a few 50 x 50 squares of planking with the same glue you used for the hull planking .... & use these as your test patches.......
This way you will see the effects of stain running in between each plank and residing there as a darker line.......
...it will also provide a visual on the effect of the stain on any residue of glue that was not necessarily visible pre staining
There is also the wipe on...wipe off technique with staining.......
.......keep us posted.......Derek