With both feet firmly in the green
During the day, Johan Sterckx, as Store Development Manager – Field Sales, is closely involved with the shop floor and our customers. After work, greenery continues to occupy his thoughts, but in a completely different way. In his own vegetable garden, he grows a wide range of vegetables, from tomatoes s to potatoes. It’s not just for fun: a good portion of the harvest still ends up on the table months later.
Close to the shop floor
At Floréac, Johan works closely with our customers and their day-to-day operations. As Store Development Manager – Field Sales, he monitors how plants are displayed on the shop floor and contributes ideas on the layout and development of the plants department.
This isn’t just about an attractive range. Presentation, available space and the practical functioning of a department also play a part in determining the outcome. Johan takes this practical insight with him from customer to customer.
At home, the shop floor makes way for soil, a greenhouse and, above all, plenty of vegetables.
A garden that keeps yielding even in winter
Johan’s vegetable garden is more than just a few plants for the summer months. Onions, potatoes, beetroot and pumpkin are deliberately grown in larger quantities. The aim? As Johan puts it himself: “to get through the winter.”
When it comes to potatoes, he mainly opts for Alouette, a striking red variety that is highly resistant to potato blight, amongst other things. And the photos of the harvest show that this choice can yield quite a few kilos.
But a successful harvest immediately brings with it the next challenge: how do you store everything for as long as possible?
This year, Johan is trying something new to achieve this. A metal box has been buried in the ground to serve as a natural storage place for the potatoes. It remains to be seen how successful this experiment will be.
“We grow potatoes, onions, beetroot and pumpkins, amongst other things, in large quantities. That way, we can still enjoy them during the winter.”
From the greenhouse to spaghetti sauce
There’s plenty of growing going on in the greenhouse too. The tomatoes, in particular, stand out. During the summer, they can produce a substantial harvest in a short space of time. And so they’re not just eaten fresh.
A large proportion of Johan’s tomatoes are turned into homemade passata. Tomatoes, onions and herbs are cooked together in the oven and then form the basis for a sauce. The passata is frozen in small portions.
Practical and tasty: on a busy day, all you need to do is take a portion out of the freezer to quickly put a fresh spaghetti sauce on the table.
“We turn many of our tomatoes into passata and freeze them in small portions. Ideal for whipping up a tasty spaghetti sauce in no time.”
Sowing, experimenting and learning
Anyone who grows their own vegetables knows that no two seasons are the same. The weather, diseases and pests, or simply a variety that performs better or worse than expected: nature can never be fully planned for.
That’s what makes experimenting so interesting. Trying a different variety, looking for a better way to store the harvest, or discovering which vegetables thrive in a particular spot. The vegetable garden is constantly evolving every year.
And perhaps there is a small connection there with Johan’s day-to-day work. Taking a close look at what works, making adjustments where necessary and putting ideas into practice. The only difference is that, at home, the result isn’t measured by shop sales, but by what ultimately comes out of the ground.
Home-grown
The greatest reward ultimately comes at the dinner table. What was a seed potato, a seed or a young plant just a few months earlier becomes an ingredient from his own garden. And thanks to preserving and processing, that pleasure doesn’t stop when summer is over.
From a crate full of Alouette potatoes to passata made from his own tomatoes: Johan tries to make the most of his harvest.
A fine example of how greenery not only fills his working day, but also simply continues to grow afterwards…