Catharine Cooke

Catharine Cooke and her husband, Ian Gribble, own Spring Lake Garden Design in Sherman, Connecticut.

  • senses in garden design
    Design

    Expert Design Advice: Let Your Senses Guide Your Garden’s Design

    When you first start to think about changing part of your landscape, slow down, look, and listen. Pay attention to how the existing conditions make you feel. Is the space…

  • Article

    How to Create a Relaxed Kitchen Garden Retreat

    Our kitchen garden has evolved over the years into a homegrown three-room space with a vegetable garden, two dining areas, and a firepit. Set apart from the house, it feels…

  • Design

    A Cozy Covered Porch Garden Room

    Our U-shaped covered porch is the place to be in winter and early spring. The house itself blocks the north wind, and the space’s southern exposure makes it perfect for…

  • Design

    How to Design a Secluded Seating Area

    To the north, accessed through our dining room door, is the most formal of our garden rooms. A paved patio creates a nice space for entertaining as it gently contains…

  • Design

    How to Design a Functional Kitchen-Patio Garden

    On the east side of our house, adjacent to the kitchen, a screened porch connects to an open patio with a built-in grill. Having a screened area for bug-free dining…

  • Spring Lake Garden
    Design

    How Great Garden Design Happens

    As a professional garden designer, I help people plan and execute projects of all sizes. Experience has taught me that asking the right questions and helping my clients to make…

  • Design

    A Gentle Approach to Planting on a Slope

    When creating a new garden design, I first analyze existing elements, deciding what works, what doesn’t, and why. Architectural and hardscaping elements are a good place to begin. When my…