Gardens designed and planted by principal owners Ian Gribble and Catharine Cooke have transformed many properties in the Connecticut/New York area into landscapes of quiet charm and beauty. Their own home & garden, as well as several of their client's, have been featured on several garden tours and the repeat requests for tours from various organizations is ongoing.

Prior to moving to the U.S. in 1987, Ian managed the land on his family's 160 acre dairy farm in Kent, England. Catharine, after graduating from Parson's School of Design, had a successful graphic arts studio in New York City for about 16 years.

The couple met in New Zealand and traveled extensively for several months while on sabbatical. They married in 1988, settling in the US, dividing their time between NYC and Connecticut. Ian & Catharine then went on to attend The New York Botanical Gardens where Catharine received a Certificate of Landscape Design and Ian earned a Diploma in Horticulture. They have over twenty years of professional gardening experience.

Very active in the community, Ian sits on the Board of Directors of Naromi Land Trust and the Sherman Cemetery Association and Catharine is on the Board of Directors of the Sherman Chamber Ensemble and serves on the Senior Housing Commission. Together, they volunteer extensively for a variety of organizations.

Catharine & Ian designed their present home in Sherman themselves, which is set on fifteen acres. The highest compliment paid to them is "how beautifully their home sits in the land." Integrating home and land, letting the inside and outside flow together easily is very important to them and this holistic approach is certainly reflected in their work.

Their approach of letting the land reveal its own beauty allows the pair's natural creativity to evolve into beautiful landscape designs. Ian, the horticulturist, pays attention to existing soil & light conditions and is interested in the 'right plant in the right place'. Catharine is looking at shapes, the play of light and shadow, color and the relationship of objects; always striving to stay true to the 'genius of a place"; it's history, it's architecture and its inhabitants.