Peace River Botanical & Sculpture Gardens

Peace River Botanical & Sculpture Gardens sits along Riverside Drive north of downtown Punta Gorda, on a property that stretches down to the banks of the Peace River. The nonprofit organization behind the gardens, Peace River Botanical & Sculpture Gardens Inc, was formed in 2008 by Roger and Linda Tetrault, and the grounds opened to the public in the fall of 2017 after years of planning and construction. The property was designed from the outset to blend two things that do not always appear together, a working botanical collection of more than 4,500 plants, trees and bamboo species, and a large permanent outdoor sculpture collection featuring pieces by internationally recognized artists.

The layout takes visitors through several distinct ecosystems represented on the property, including marshland, wetland, mangrove, upland and tidal basin zones, connected by more than a mile and a half of walking trails and over 15,000 square feet of boardwalks and docks along the river. Sculptures are placed throughout these zones rather than concentrated in a single gallery space, so the experience of walking the grounds mixes horticulture with contemporary art at almost every turn. The gardens have hosted traveling exhibitions, including large scale outdoor sculpture shows, alongside their permanent collection.

Beyond the plant and sculpture displays, the gardens include a Butterfly House, koi feeding areas and a gift shop, and the organization runs a regular calendar of art classes, horticulture workshops and yoga and performing arts events on the grounds. Admission is ticketed, with adults paying 21 dollars, seniors 18 dollars, students ages six through seventeen paying 10 dollars, and children under six admitted free. A Museums for All discount brings admission down to 5 dollars for visitors receiving SNAP benefits, reflecting an effort to keep the gardens accessible across income levels. Membership options are also available for repeat visitors.

Hours shift seasonally, running Tuesday through Sunday from 9am to 2pm during the hottest months of June through September, and expanding to seven days a week from 9am to 4pm from October through May. The gardens close on the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

The gardens carry a Punta Gorda mailing address, and locally the property is closely associated with the city given its proximity and the number of Punta Gorda based groups and schools that visit. That said, federal geocoding places its address at 5827 Riverside Drive within the Cleveland census designated place, an unincorporated part of Charlotte County just outside Punta Gorda’s official city limits. The gardens nonetheless function as a de facto Punta Gorda area cultural landmark and are consistently promoted as such by the local tourism bureau and chamber of commerce, which is why this entry is included here with that location distinction flagged for review.