Tucked away on Bayou Liberty Road in Slidell is a quiet haven, the type of ideal refuge that most people seek when moving to St. Tammany Parish. It’s a great setting. For one familiar with New Orleans, it’s very reminiscent of being in City Park or Audubon Park, and it has played host to visitors from all parts of the globe.

Paul and Bonnie Taliancich have owned the property for more than 35 years. It consists of 10 acres of wooded land with three dwellings, hundreds of trees and plants, a greenhouse and one big, friendly cat named Trout.

As you enter the gates, you approach the large brick home where Paul and Bonnie live. In the rear is a single-story wood home called the Garden House. When Bonnie retired from teaching school more than six years ago, she and Paul decided to turn the cottage into a bed-and-breakfast inn.

The Garden House was the first home on the estate. It was built around 1905, and was renovated by former owners, with the help of Bob Helmer, an architecture professor at Tulane University. He designed the striking front room of the Garden House, with its vaulted ceilings and floor-to-ceiling glass windows. The room’s view includes a grove of live oak trees planted with roses and potted ferns and the bromeliads from Paul’s greenhouse that span the grounds.

“You’re looking at the chief cook and bottle washer around here,” says Bonnie, “although it will get easier when Paul retires next year.” She’s not really complaining too much; keeping the property ready for guests is a labor of love for her. In fact, having to maintain the property was one of the factors in making the decision to start the bed and breakfast in the first place.

Paul and Bonnie are very much hands-on proprietors, spending a lot of time with their guests. At least one day’s breakfast is a huge affair served formally in their home. Bonnie prepares the eggs and fruit, while Paul makes his famous buttermilk biscuits. “It’s all in the timing,” says Paul. “You have to have the biscuits ready to leave the oven at the same time everything else is ready. They’re not the same once they get cold.”

Bonnie shines as a big northshore promoter when she helps guests plan their activities. Working closely with local attractions and the St. Tammany Parish Tourist Commission, her goal is to have her guests spend more time in the parish.

They’re happy to take guests out on the town in Slidell for dinner in the local restaurants and shopping in the Olde Towne district, or to recommend dining places for those who want to venture out on their own.

The Garden House attracts many eco-tourists, mainly birders from all parts of the country and from around the world. Paul and Bonnie have done a remarkable job landscaping the property; quiet paths where bird feeders are placed at intervals make for perfect bird watching.

Paul, an engineer at the Stennis facility, has a strong interest in botany. He designed and built an 1,800-square foot greenhouse, where he raises mainly tropical plants, concentrating on bromeliads and ferns. He has hundreds of examples of these plants spread throughout the property, and they all must be returned to the greenhouse when winter comes.

Paul and Bonnie began collecting antique furniture in the 1960s. For more than fifteen years they spent nearly every Saturday at auctions and estate sales. Their diligence has resulted in a home filled with beautiful antique furniture. The collection consists mainly of 18th and 19th century pieces manufactured for plantation homes along the Mississippi River by renowned craftsmen including Mallard, McCracken, Mitchells and Rammelsberg.

Copyright 2003, M&L Publishing, all rights reserved.