A couple of questions about dahlias and rhubarb

I'm a novice gardener so I'll be searching for a lot of information so apologies in advance.
My first issue is that I'm not sure what to do with dahlias and rhubarb

1 The dahlias are still flowering but we will be away from the middle of November. Should I cut them back before we go as the temperature is supposed to drop
2 I've had conflicting views what to do with the tubers (we live near Birmingham Uk) one view dig the tubers out wrap them in paper and put in a garage or cover them with a thick layer of mulch . Which do you prefer and why

I've just received some rhubarb crowns I wasn't expecting until early next year. I can't plant out as their home isn't ready what can I do to keep them until spring next year

 

The thing with Rhubarb is it starts into growth really early so I would look to getting it permanently planted by January.

 

Thanks to both of you I'll try the solutions you've suggested. I do hope to get tge rhubarb in when we get back as they are going into 2 large pots rather than the ground

 

The thing about dahlias is - it totally depends on your climate and conditions. I couldn't leave them out in the ground here as they'd just keep soaking up the moisture from the ground around them, and then there's the problem of them rotting, either with general wet weather or with freezing/thawing, and then rotting. Covering them would make no difference. As for storing them, you need to make sure remove as much soil/compost as possible, so that the tubers can dry off well enough. Any moisture left on them can cause rotting, so if they're kept in anything absorbent, the moisture will tend to stay and just be reabsorbed by them.

Just keep the rhubarb in any kind of container you have - even old compost bags or similar, as long as they have drainage holes and enough soil. They'll be fine for a good while until you get your containers ready.

 

Dahlias definitely come up over here, leaving them in would mean slugs rubbing their greedy paws together come spring.

A gentleman whose garden I used to walk past experimented by leaving some in, and they looked awful until about July. Munched swiss cheese

I plant my overwintered tubers indoors in large pots around April, they grow nicely and once they are around 30cm tall can cope with slugs. Overwintering is rather unceremonious, I try to get as much soil off the tubers and then chuck them into a cardboard box in the shed.