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In the fall, green growers traditionally pitch their tents at trade shows. Laurica-Plants is no exception. Although on the occasion of its fiftieth anniversary, the company decided to go a step further. Not only could new and existing customers get acquainted with the main shapes and sizes for the coming season during the 32nd edition of GrootGroenPlus, the doors of the nursery also opened to the general public during the Day of Agriculture.
“GrootGroenPlus is a regular appointment for us,” says Marian Maenhoudt of Laurica-Plants. “Indeed, in recent years we have noticed that buyers are visiting fewer and fewer nurseries themselves. Nowadays it is mainly on the fair floor that we meet. So we want to make the most of the opportunity to maintain contacts, present the most important shapes and sizes, and show our product in all its glory. After all, living greenery is not something you just buy blind.”
However, since Laurica-Plants will blow out no less than fifty candles in 2022, the company decided to do something extra this year. Therefore, the doors of the nursery in Jabbeke were also opened to the general public during the Day of Agriculture on Sunday, September 18 - an event that was itself celebrating its fortieth edition, no less.
“Agriculture Day focuses on the broad agricultural sector, including horticulture, and tries to bring it closer to the general population again,” said Marian Maenhoudt. “We had already received several requests from the organization to participate; this seemed like the ideal time to say ‘yes.’”
Laurica-Plants received over 3,000 visitors during Agriculture Day. They were treated to a complete laurel experience. “We obviously saw a lot of private individuals, but here and there also a garden contractor or other green professional. Everyone was given an extensive tour of the nursery, there were pruning demonstrations, and people could taste bay laurel liqueur, bay cheese and even bay cake. We wanted to do something different than the familiar stews, and really introduce people to the flavor and versatility of bay laurel.”
After the visit, everyone was given the DIY guide ‘Five Steps to Healthy Laurel.
“That guide explains pruning, watering, fertilizing, repotting and overwintering, and was put together especially for this occasion. People were clearly taken with it, because during the visit they had regularly stood there wide-eyed at what goes on in our nursery. Especially the large amount of manual labor involved in pruning the plants and the time it takes to grow a young plant into a full-fledged mature plant amazed many people. I am therefore convinced that this visit has given people a greater respect for both our profession and the plants themselves,” concludes Marian Maenhoudt. “They may never look at the plants on their patio or the dried leaves in their kitchen cupboard in the same way again.”
