PLEASE NOTE: If your photo shoot date does not appear on this form, it is not available and the transaction is not allowed. Applications must be submitted at least one week before your date for booking.
Si la fecha de tu sesión de fotos no aparece, significa que no está disponible y no se puede reservar. Las solicitudes deben enviarse al menos una semana antes de la fecha deseada.
Please contact marica.julien@duke.edu with questions about photography permits.
GET READY FOR CHERRIES!
Cherry blossoms typically bloom in March at Duke Gardens, although the exact date is extremely difficult to predict at this time.
Stay updated by checking our cherries page, and remember to check our website before you visit for construction-related changes that may impact you.
GARDEN GATEWAY UPDATE
Construction of the Garden Gateway is still underway. We can't wait to share the new spaces with you later this spring!
We'll announce the opening date on our website as soon as it's confirmed. Please check back here for the latest information, including construction-related changes that will impact your visit prior to the Garden Gateway opening.
There are important changes for visitors this year due to construction of the Garden Gateway project, including:
* No visitor parking Monday-Friday.
We strongly recommend using alternative transport options to get here on weekdays.
* Limited parking is available on Saturday & Sunday in the Duke University H lot,
located next to the temporary Gardens pedestrian entrance at 2000 Lewis St.
* Dogs are only permitted before 10 a.m. and after 5 p.m.
During construction of the Garden Gateway (Feb. 2025-spring 2026), the outdoor areas of Duke Gardens will remain open, but the main entrance, visitor center and parking lots are closed. Visitors may enter the Gardens through a temporary pedestrian entrance located at 2000 Lewis St., one block north of the main entrance.
Importantly, there is no visitor parking on Monday through Friday. Parking is available to visitors on weekends only in the Duke University H lot, which is adjacent to the new pedestrian entrance on Lewis St. We encourage visitors to use alternative transportation whenever possible or visit on the weekends when parking is available.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to complete these much-needed upgrades.
During construction of the Garden Gateway, there is no visitor parking on Monday through Friday. Parking is available to visitors on weekends only in the Duke University H lot, which is adjacent to the new temporary pedestrian entrance on Lewis St. We encourage visitors to use alternative transportation whenever possible. Learn more on this page.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to complete these much-needed upgrades.
Duke Gardens will not hold a plant sale in Spring 2026 due to construction of the Garden Gateway. Please check back in Fall 2026 for future plant sale dates.
Duke Gardens will be welcoming registered self-guided groups later in the spring of 2026. Registration will open after construction of the Garden Gateway project is complete. Check back here for the registration link once it becomes available.
Guided field trips are not available in spring 2026 while we unpack and set up our new classroom space. We are excited to welcome students back to the Gardens for guided field trips in the 2026-2027 school year. Registration will become available after Labor Day 2026.
The Terrace Café is now permanently closed. Café services will relocate to the Gardens Café in the new Welcome Center in Spring 2026.
We currently are not accepting reservations for weddings, private events and meetings, as the Doris Duke Center will be closed for construction of the Garden Gateway. You can sign up here to receive the latest news and updates about the Garden Gateway, including when reservations resume for special events.
Piedmont prairies are grassland ecosystems that once covered a substantial part of the rolling landscape of the Piedmont region that stretches from New Jersey to central Alabama, covering an area of approximately 80,000 square miles. This ecosystem, maintained through grazing and the controlled use of fire by the many Indigenous groups, began to vanish with the arrival of Europeans. Join Blomquist Garden of Native Plants curator Annabel Renwick to learn how widespread conservation efforts are now recognizing Indigenous wisdom in maintaining this ecosystem and how Annabel has rebuilt this prairie landscape at Duke Gardens with native ecotype wildflowers and grasses.