Please be aware that visits are strictly by appointment only, with no exceptions. Email us on karan@junker.co.uk to agree an appointment.

Admission Cost is now £12.50 per person. Due to logistics, this can only be made in advance, by bank transfer, at the time of booking your appointment.

Let's start with the simple part - Yes, visits to see some of our fabulous plants are possible, by appointment. However, the detail is a little more complicated than that, so please bear with me! We don't have a tea-room, we don't have a play area... but what we do have are plants. Plants galore!

As many of our customers are aware, we are very proud that every plant that is sold on our nursery is propagated from plant material growing here on our nursery. This means that we have specimens of every single plant in all our collections growing here in Somerset, on our nearly 50 acre site. This gives us unparalleled ability to trial and compare the cultivars in our extensive collections; enabling us to recommend and propagate the very best selections, based on our personal experience of growing these plants in the increasingly extreme (but still typically British) weather!

As described elsewhere, we are a relatively small nursery, and in no way a Garden Centre. We have no staff to cover for us if we are otherwise engaged. This means that it is essential that we know you are coming. I cannot stress this enough. We are only open by appointment.

For a couple of years post-covid, we allowed customers who were collecting plants (by appointment) to walk around selected areas of trial and stock plants. These areas have been meticulously planned to incorporate winding paths, twisting and weaving through our undulating site. Around any corner or over any crest you may come across exciting new hybrids or new selections from our own breeding programmes, proving their potential and providing propagation material. There are areas focusing on Japanese maples, Betula, Cornus (flowering dogwoods), winter flowering Daphne, Hamamelis, Magnolia, along with many other exciting trees and shrubs growing among them. As these carefully designed display gardens of trial and stock plants have developed and matured, the paths have had aggregate added to facilitate safe access even when the ground is wet. Be warned, the paths are surfaced with loose stone, so although they should never be muddy, they can be rough and uneven. Some paths are narrow and somewhat steep. Stout shoes are necessary and appropriate care must be taken. We are also dedicated to accurately and correctly named plants, and as such have spent many an hour and not inconsiderable expense on clearly labelling the plants.

We have been pleased to be able to share the unique experience of absorbing some of the planting combinations and concepts in these areas and have been grateful for the enthusiasm, joy and excitement that customers have expressed. However, it has become clear that the demand (from private individuals, gardeners, designers, as well as head gardeners and curators from some of the most significant gardens in the country alike) for experiencing several acres of our planting that has been described as "astonishing", "mind-blowing", "incredible", combined with the expense and hours required to achieve, maintain and expand them, has become such that it is appropriate to require an entry fee that will be put towards the maintenance, expansion and development of these areas (as well as covering bureaucratic necessities like insurance). As a result, there is a £12.50 per person entry fee. Please be aware that we do not accept credit card. Hence payment must be by bank transfer in advance. Please note - if you wish to walk around these areas at the time of collecting plants, please do discuss this by email in advance at the time of booking an appointment. We do not have staff, and whilst running the nursery there are many jobs that might require our presence elsewhere on the site such that on occasion it may not be possible to allow entry without prior notice and agreement. It should also be noted that in the event of high winds, flooding, or otherwise unsafe weather, entry may be closed without notice. 

I will conclude with a kind quote from a Senior Gardener at a well known public garden -"I think it’s got to be one of the best collections on that scale in the UK, and likely one of the best collections of selected genera at any scale."

Please be politely advised that anyone arriving without an appointment will not be welcome.

Please do keep to your appointment time. The gate is currently locked at all other times. Therefore, please email me if you are delayed or need to change your plans. This is very important please as I may have other customers or commitments scheduled. At nearly 50 acres, our new site is much larger than the old one, so there is the potential for us to be working several fields away. To be blunt, we have too much to do to waste time waiting for customers who are late. I'm sorry if this seems rude, but we have a lot to do here!

For those of you familiar with our old site, be aware that we are doing things a little differently here, so please do email me to discuss your requirements.

I will email directions at the time of confirming your visit day and time. These are very important even if you use satnav or other digital navigation aids, because in rural areas postcodes inevitably cover a wider area and will not pinpoint us exactly. As a guide, we are situated a few minutes north of Wellington, Somerset, so some 30 minutes from where we used to live. If you use Google maps, then do so with care (as described on the emailed directions). There are inconsistencies with the information it gives which we are having difficulty fixing!

This is a working nursery, not a public garden. I regret that I must ask you to leave your dog in the car and request that children are kept under very close supervision. Please wear appropriate footwear and take care at all times. Please respect our request to keep to the paths. The beds and even the grass are thickly planted with bulbs, which will not be visible at all times of year. Walking on these areas when the bulb noses are just below the surface can cause enormous damage. So please keep to the paths. Please respect our instructions as to where you may and may not walk. Some paths are roped off to indicate that access beyond that point is not permitted. This applies to everyone with no exceptions. Anyone who ventures into other areas will be asked to leave.

We are totally committed to our principles of open ground growing as being so much better for the plants. Our open ground plants growing on for sale are lined out over a number of acres (we have approaching 50 acres here in all). In addition to modern health and safety in the workplace regulations, the other matter of concern these days is bio-security. We operate a closed collection here (ie we rarely bring plants onto the site from outside sources) thus minimising the likelihood of introducing pests and diseases. Given the prevalence of serious diseases around the country (referring to the plants in this context!) we avoid external footfall around our growing-on plants. Hence even prior to covid, access was restricted to the all weather paths around the display planting and that will remain the case. As a result, it is not possible to walk round the growing areas (either the open ground plants outside or the youngest container grown plants in polytunnels) so it is not possible to choose specific specimens in person.

Therefore, we prefer to illustrate our sale plants via individual photographs and it is best to discuss the detail of your requirements and the suitable possibilities by email. Be aware that I will not be able to give you accurate availability information whilst you are here because that is something I need to do with the benefit of the computer and by looking at the actual plants. It’s not something I can do off the top of my head. It is not possible to lift the open ground plants "whilst you wait". They would need to either be pre-ordered for collection on the day or delivered / collected subsequent to your visit. 

It may be possible to take certain of the younger pot grown plants away with you on the day, but it is important to understand that we are not a "garden centre". Even the 3 litre plants are on "growing beds" not "sales beds". Typically, a number of plants will be reserved awaiting collection or despatch, so just because a plant is physically there, it doesn't mean that it is available, since it may already be reserved for someone else. It can take time therefore to sort out the availability status of a list of wanted plants, which it's not always possible to do on the spot. 

Daphnes are the one group which are usually possible to collect whilst you are visiting in the winter or early spring, without pre-ordering, but prior discussion is still preferable, and essential for everything else.

It may be relevant to also be aware that due to limited space (and the vast extent of some of our collections!) only a small selection of our complete collection is actually planted in the currently accessible plantings. Particularly in the context of our larger collections like Acer and Magnolia, there are far more options and combinations of features possible than are on display. In addition, plants are very much "individuals" (this may be particularly relevant with Japanese maples where their architectural shape is intrinsic to their appeal). Although the sale plants are all named cultivars and will display the characteristics of that cultivar, each one will have a unique shape and "feel". Hence, at the stage of discussing your requirements by email, the more information you can give me as to the visual effect you're seeing in your mind's eye, the better I understand the effect you want to achieve, the better able to help I am. I'm quite good at interpreting people's requirements and finding the perfect plant...it's what I do!

Please be aware that there are no facilities on site, for which I can make no exception. Please don't embarrass us both by asking! There are however public conveniences in Wiveliscombe only 5 minutes north of us, where there is ample free parking and some fabulous small shops and cafes. There is also a pub in Langford Budville, where there is also a cafe. www.whitepostcafe.com

Can I also remind you please that we do not currently take plastic in any form, nor can we accept cheques any longer. The admission fee and pre-booked orders should be paid for by bank transfer prior to collecting. Daphnes collected on the day can be paid for by cash. Alternatively these days, if you have a banking app on your phone, it should be possible for you to make a transfer whilst you are here. In which event, we would provide our bank details.

Guided group visits around the display plantings can be accommodated as we have done previously. Please email to discuss details.

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