Corey O’Steen

I didn’t realize it at the time, but I began my landscaping career when I was 4 years old as I pruned a bush in the back left corner of my parents’ yard. At 13, I began doing lawn maintenance in Jacksonville, Florida, until I went to Auburn University in 1987.  During my time at Auburn, I was on the AU Swim Team, worked as team manager then went on to coach. I graduated in Pre-Med, Science Education and completed several classes in Mechanical Engineering.

After graduation, I operated a lawn maintenance company from 1992 to 1999. However, I wanted greater mental stimulation than what was required to mow, edge, weed eat and blow lawns, so in 2000 I started Creative Habitats Landscaping, a company specifically focused on Landscape Design and installation.

I have built my knowledge base in this field by speaking to numerous growers, observing what plants actually do in our area, asking many questions, reading many books and making many mistakes (also known as gaining valuable experience). My passion lies in the preservation of nature and sustainability.

My goal with Creative Habitats is not only to create beautiful outdoor living spaces, but also to change our landscaping psychology to adopt design practices that will stimulate nature, reduce water and chemical use and come close to eliminating a need to mow.