Pink Princess and Boon Grass

I've usually got some grand scheme in mind to cover the mantel when I take down the holiday decor, not so much this year. Still, old habits and all, so I'm sharing what I did do...

The one thing I knew I wanted were protea blooms, these Protea neriifolia (pink mink or late mink?) fit the bill nicely, they're joined by a few leucadendron stems.

There are also several houseplants. Starting at the far left; Philodendron 'Red Heart' and Calathea lancifolia. These were both up pre-holiday and they've returned. I'm notoriously hard on houseplants but they've have been going strong for months.

The undersides of the calathea leaves.

This Rhipsalis NoID is another easy-going survivor. 

If it's a sunny day there's a moment in the early afternoon when light from the south-facing kitchen window shines all the way across the house and illuminates the mantel. In this case it makes the Protea glow.

This little black cup is a new purchase, a cordial glass from CB2. I cannot imagine drinking from it, I bought it for this exact purpose.

Philodendron 'Pink Princess Marble' was a new addition, I had an empty container and thought the pink was a nice play off the protea. I find it somewhat entertaining that for $8 I added what was once a hot ticket houseplant to the mix, not because I was lusting for one, but because the price was nice and it fit the scheme. 

The princess is on the left, then little begonia starts, Sansevieria kirkii 'Coppertone' and another Philodendron 'Red Heart'. The back and white pottery is vintage Royal Copley (regular readers have seen it before, and yes, I also have a few that are pink and brown and several others in a green and brown colorway).

The begonia leaves (maybe Begonia 'Red Kiss'?) are quite colorful. 

You might be thinking "but she doesn't like pink?"... true, I'm not normally a big fan. However the protea and the color of the fireplace tile set the tone.

I filled a vase with the remaining leucadendron stems and put it on the dining table, sadly I cannot ID them.

So are you wondering where the Boon Grass (in the title of the post) comes into play? And what the heck is Boon Grass anyway? It's a way to care for my tillandsia collection (you saw some of them on the mantel).

I've always struggled with where to dry my indoor tillandsia after soaking them in the sink. It's best to turn them upside down, so the water runs out of the crown, but that can bend and crease the small leaves at the center. It also tends to keep the crown wet longer if they're top down on a wet towel.

So when I saw someone offering up this tray of Boon Grass on our local Buy Nothing Facebook group, I jumped at the offer.

It allows for fabulous air circulation, the leaves aren't bent, and I can easily pick it up and move it if I need to.

The "grass" is separate from the base tray, where any water that falls collects.

Mine was the best price (free!) but it's available to purchase direct from the company or from Amazon. Of course this product isn't meant to be a tillandsia drier, it's actually designed for baby "accessories" (bottles and pacifiers), but there's nothing wrong with a little creative re-use in the name of plant happiness!

The Bit at the End

Today I'm sharing a recent snippet of writing from Photographer David Perry, You can fool some of the AI some of the time... it has to do with creative pursuits, photo editing, and of course AI.

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All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude. 

The Ray Garden, during Study Weekend

The next Study Weekend open garden I visited belongs to Erin and Brian Ray, they call it The Green Room. The pavers in the hellstrip aren't new, they were here when I visited in 2019, but the plantings are. Not that you needed me to point that out, they definitely have that “just planted” size and tidiness, don’t they? I like the random, yet geometric, placement.

From the garden description: “Our garden has been evolving for almost 30 years. Initially our efforts involved addressing years of deferred maintenance. Eventually the changes became focused on creating beautiful spaces to enjoy ourselves and to entertain friends...

Our 50 x 100 foot lot has large elevation changes in front and back. Over the years we’ve added a boulder wall in the front, with many Mediterranean and drought-tolerant plants…”

A wider view, the lady on the left is starting up the staircase to the house level…

The driveway is bordered on both sides by a rock wall planted up with sempervivum. Here you can see the staircase. I meant to ask Erin if they have access to their home from inside the garage. I hope so, carrying groceries up those stairs in the rain would not be fun.

At the top of the stairs.

The patio in front of the house. What a great place to watch the world go by.

The patio-side plantings…

And containers on the patio.

The gate to the back garden on the west side of the house. I wanted to take a shot further back on this pathway but there were so many people! If you’re curious you should click over to my 2019 visit for more photos.

Walking in, beyond the gate. The wall of green on the right really helps to break up would could have just been a bare wooden fence (that’s behind the green).

The wider view. I love how the garden hugs the patio.

Looking up to the pergola in the corner.

A reminder, the Study Weekend event took place in June, as our summer heat was just getting started. I’m sure that banana was much larger before the summer was over.

Looking down on the patio.

I love this panel, a perfect mix with the Passiflora.

The corner pergola, I can’t believe I managed a shot with out people!

Back down on the patio level (the table is behind me).

Now I’m standing on the neighbor’s property looking back towards the Ray’s (you can see their staircase). To get here I walked out along the east side of the house. On my previous visit I wasn't able to do so, there was a sort of workspace on the east side and the gate was closed. I suspect Erin (who is a garden designer) was responsible for redoing the neighbor’s front yard and thus it was a twofer with her own garden for the tour.

Beefy planters at the front of the house…

Camille Paulsen got the pulled back shot I wasn't patient enough to wait for, thanks for letting me use this one Camille...

It’s all so civilized! 

The neighbor’s hellstrip.

And looking up at a newly planted area from the public sidewalk.

This is the end of the Friday open gardens. Thankfully I still have a full weekend of gardens and a bonus Monday garden to share!

The Bit at the End

I am using this Bit at the End to honor Renee Nicole Good, the woman murdered by ICE in Minneapolis on January 7th. Quoting from Literary Hub: The bio from a now-private Instagram account belonging to Good describes her as a “Poet and writer and wife and mom and shitty guitar strummer from Colorado; experiencing Minneapolis, MN.” In 2020, when she went by Renée Nicole Macklin, she won the prestigious Academy of American Poets Prize for a poem called “On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs.” Read the complete Lit Hub piece here, read the complete poem here. I will not link to any the many videos of the shooting that are circulating, but if you haven't seen it you owe it to Ms. Good to watch so you can see for yourself exactly what happened, with your own eyes. 

As I write, there is news of another shooting, this time involving two people, by Federal Agents here in Portland on the afternoon of the 8th, the details are still being fleshed out. Please be safe out there.

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All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.