Empty plot over the winter - to cover or not

What about sowing some Phacelia there? I'm sure I read somewhere that it can be sown in October and you'd have flowers in the spring. Maybe you could run a mower over it when you want to put the dahlias in?

Is there a green manure that dies before spring, doesn't seed itself and doesn't need to be dug in?

Winter purslane, AKA miners lettuce or claytonia.

Starts to germinate and grow now, will give you green salad leaves all winter, and by March has pretty much died away. It will seed itself, but that's not a problem because it won't germinate and start to grow again till next autumn.  

It is a small, low growing annual plant so you need a lot of seeds to cover a big patch.

What about sowing some Phacelia there? I'm sure I read somewhere that it can be sown in October and you'd have flowers in the spring. Maybe you could run a mower over it when you want to put the dahlias in?

Deffo plan to utilise some of this so will let you know the results Veggie  Going to order some seeds now.

Straw bales are cheap to buy Scarlet, though I have no idea how many you would need to cover an acre(eek)

Just wondering what you have done in the past? The cost of covering that much land is going to be really expensive, whatever you use.

Oops! Mixed up Phacelia with Limanthes.

Going to try the poached egg plant again (Limanthes NOT phacelia)

Oops again! Just read up on Phacelia, looks interesting so we will have some of those as well!

Just been out walking the dog and had a ponder on your dilemma Scarlet.

If I had an acre of land where my only intention was to grow dahlias in summer I think I would just treat it as a wild flower meadow by cutting down weeds with lawnmower set on high height and sowing a wildflower mix in spring. I would then just pocket plant the Dahlias through the meadow. Without knowing contours of land and shape of land I am just envisioning half a football pitch?

I don't think Scarlet wants to cover an acre with plastic, just the bit that had the dahlias in!

That's it VC!!

I have approx 100 dahlia tubers. At the moment there are quite a few flowering. I'm not digging them up to plant something else.

They will slowly get dug up when the foliage is blackened completely by frost.
This will not be until late November at the latest.It will get weeded as I dig and sort out my dahlia tubers.

I will then cover over until March and put the tubers back in after I have split and labelled up.
There isn't anytime or work left in me to try to grow something in that space.

Oops again! Just read up on Phacelia, looks interesting so we will have some of those as well!

Bees and hoverflies go absolutely mad for phacelia flowers.

Just been out walking the dog and had a ponder on your dilemma Scarlet.

If I had an acre of land where my only intention was to grow dahlias in summer ........Without knowing contours of land and shape of land I am just envisioning half a football pitch?

Yes, think half a football pitch! The dahlia growing is only a small section. But a time consuming one.

I have a large walled garden, a veg plot and a min "orchard".
Lawn for very active collie and husband that has set up a assault course for dog. 
Lawn also used for ball games, football and archery.
This is edged on 3 sides with deep flower borders - 15- 10ft in most places. A pond.
Small "orchard" - a section given over to fruit trees - 4 pears 10 apples. Mostly planted last year after my walnut tree was felled.
3 large cob nut bushes.
This is edged in a native mixed hedge. 
Veg plot- 20ft Green House, 12 Ft GH, a shed
Large raspberry patch/maybe 30ftx10ft.
10 currant bushes. Approx 6 gooseberry bushes/ hedge. Area with tayberries. Several rhubarb plants.
 With an area taken over for growing dahlias. 
This size - I just want to cover withnon growing stuff it to reduce my Spring work and save my back.