Over wintered geraniums have died

[yankeecandle4]

Last year for the first time I have had time to dedicate to the garden and I went to town buying stuff. I purchased many geraniums, did a lot of research and pulled them up late October and put half of them into paper bags. I've been checking them weekly and they've been fine, until today when I discovered that they have all gone black, rotten and soft. Bit devastated really, I assume it is fungal rot. They were in the shed and dry so I'm not sure how that happened?

I know it's a first world problem but was really looking forward to watching them rebloom in the spring

But why did you put them in plastic bags????
And since when have gardening woes only been a first world problem? People grow flowers and edibles everywhere.

Sorry...paper bags. Hm... sounds like they had not enough air circulating. Maybe the air was dampish. Maybe there was a bit if fungus on the leaves which spread.
I'm sorry they didnt survive.

Sorry to hear about your plants. It is disappointing when things like that happen. I must admit, I didn't know you were supposed to do that.

Mine are still in pots in the garden. I'm either going to put them in the (cold) greenhouse to overwinter or bring them inside when I get round to it.

funny I do consider the death of a few geraniums to be a first world problem. I wasn't relying on them to feed my family/livestock, they were purely for cosmetic purposes :-)

Thankfully I placed the other half in small pots in the house, so all is not lost. I also took cuttings in late October that have been in a pot of water that I'm hoping will root. It is all experimental for me at this stage as a novice, but I am disappointed that the paper bag method failed for me.

Sorry that has happened. I also haven't heard of the paper bag method. Fingers crossed for successful cuttings from the other half. It is very disappointing when you lose plants you've put effort into keeping.

Yes cuttings are the way to go. Carol Klein's methods work for me

Even the poorest humans grow flowers because they are pretty. A love of beauty and growing things doesn't belong to the 'first world'