Frequently Asked Questions

In addition to shopping at our nursery, we also sell plants online through our website, on eBay and on Amazon marketplace. You may also call or email with special requests. We recommend customers sign up for our newsletters to receive Email Updates with new product announcements  

Carter and Holmes Orchids is not currently offering plants on a wholesale or bulk quantity basis. 

We can ship to all Lower 48 states plus Puerto Rico without issue, though sometimes weather delays will occur. We use USPS and FedEx, depending on the recipient and item(s) being shipped.

Shipping to Hawaii and the US Virgin Islands will require your plants to be inspected and a Phytosanitary Certificate to be issued. Hawaii Department of Agriculture also requires an import permit to be presented.

Shipping outside the United States varies by country and region. Orchids are legally protected by international law and CITES. For more information please visit International and Overseas Shipping.  

Most orders are shipped within 7-10 business days of placing the order. This will vary during our busier times, as we always prioritize by when the order was placed. In order for our plants to arrive in the best possible condition, we need to ship early in the week to avoid plants sitting in shipping hubs over the weekend. We also watch the weather to make sure the temperatures are not too hot or cold en route or at the destination.

Orders generally arrive 2-3 days after we ship which means that orders to certain states need to be shipped earlier in the week to arrive before the weekend. Our Shipping days are Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. We ship only to certain areas on Thursday and we do not ship Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

For example, if you place your order on a Wednesday or Thursday and you live in California, your order will likely wait until the following Monday or Tuesday to ship. 

Yes, visitors are welcome Monday through Saturday each week, from 9am to 5pm. Some holiday hours will vary.  

“Grex” refers to the specific parentage used to make a hybrid (cross). Different cultivars (clonal varieties) can produce different results in the offspring. When a hybrid cross is made, all of the seedlings grown from the resulting seed pod are considered to be from the same grex. 

Items with “M” preceding/included in the four or five digit product number are mericlones (produced from tissue culture), also called meristems, and are expected to be identical to the photo shown. 

We do not use the term seedling to refer the overall plant size but instead to indicate which plants are produced by seedpod culture. Seedlings are simply listed with the four or five digit number assigned to that cross/batch. You should expect some variation in size, shape, color, markings and form among these plants. 

Limited Edition refers to seedling crosses or mericlones that were produced or germinated in extremely limited quantities. We may only have a few dozen plants available and they will go on a first come basis. 

“Bare-Root” plants may be from overgrown pots or community flats. All are ready for at least 2.5”-3” pots and may be larger as descriptions state. 

“Near Blooming Size” indicates plants that are large enough to flower in season within 12-18 months or less. It does not mean that plants are shipped in bud or bloom. 

“Blooming Size” indicates plants that are large enough to flower in season, within 12 months or less. It does not mean plants are shipped in bud or bloom. 

The term Standard Cattleya generally refers to plants having a large growth habit, being a minimum of 15”-18” tall at maturity and having blooms four inches or larger in diameter. Many plants in this group are noticeably fragrant and most will require strong, indirect light to do their best. Best suited for greenhouses, and other bright light growing spaces. 

Compact Cattleyas are generally 8”-12” in height when mature, with blooms smaller than four inches across. May be suitable for windowsill growing conditions and under artificial lights.  

Miniature Cattleyas will be shorter than 8” with blooms expected to be smaller than four inches in diameter. Many mini-catts will grow and flower well in a well lit windowsill or under artificial growing lights. (Some exceptions)