Juniper Level Botanic Garden in Raleigh hosts rare open house this weekend

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Raleigh's Juniper Level Botanic Garden is hosting a summer open house this weekend. The not-for-profit garden is only open to the public eight weekends a year. It sits on 28 acres about 12 miles south of Raleigh.

Juniper Level Botanic Garden is worldwide for its rare and exotic plants and trees. The founder, Tony Avent, started the garden in 1988 on two acres. In 2018, he left the garden to NC State.

"Our goal was to really have a place where we could propagate and share rare plants," Avent said. "We're in the process of a transition, so we've set up an endowment now at NC State. As soon as the endowment has enough to sustain an operational budget, then we will formally switch over and we'll be open year-round every day."

Juniper Level Botanic Garden is funded by proceeds from Plants Delight Nursery on the grounds, which mails more than 100,000 rare plants around the world yearly. The open house is free and runs Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.