Good Gardens is led by owner and principal designer Karen Corcoran Hughan, whose extensive career bridges commercial and residential landscape design-build, interior and exterior landscape contracting. After honing her deep technical expertise over two decades in Boston, the mid-Atlantic, and Atlanta, Karen brought her talents to Fairfield County in 2000. Since then, she has been dedicated to her true passion: designing inspiring and transformative outdoor spaces.
Incorporating a love and respect for the environment into community is integral to Good Gardens. Karen is actively involved in horticultural and civic organizations, has served on the boards of Tree Conservancy of Darien and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America, and has mentored numerous emerging professionals. Strong partnerships with builders, architects and craftspeople reflect design capabilities and a deep connection to the community. Good Gardens work has been featured on the Darien House Tour and on several garden tours, further demonstrating strong community ties.
Karen holds a degree in Horticulture and Environmental Sciences from the University of Rhode Island and further refined her craft studying in England and later working for a renowned London nursery. The influence and essence of European garden traditions ~ structure, layering and an emphasis on a natural landscape aesthetic that integrates with surrounding countryside ~ continues to inform her design work today.
“We are guided by light, structure, natural elements, color, and seasonality to create landscapes that are highly personal and create peace, pleasure and a sense of place.”
OUR TEAM
Principal - Karen Corcoran Hughan
“The ability to turn an avocation into a vocation has been one of life’s great blessings. Sharing that passion, helping others experience beautiful, rewarding landscapes that bring peace and pleasure, is equally fulfilling. Just as landscape design itself merges art and science, I believe the design process brings together nature and human nature, rooted in collaboration, understanding, and trust.”
landscape designER - Rendering artist - luke barclay
Luke Barclay is a New York–based landscape designer and rendering artist with over fifteen years of experience designing residential landscapes across urban, suburban, and rural environments. A graduate of Columbia University’s Master’s program in Landscape Design, has developed a specialty in landscape rendering, creating detailed drawings and conceptual visualizations for landscape and interior designers, as well as artisans and other creative professionals throughout the United States and abroad.