Bill Carter and Owen Holmes began selling cattleyas as cut flowers in the years following World War II when corsage flowers were in great demand for Valentine's Day, Easter, and Mother's Day. As lifestyles became less formal in the 1960's and the demand for cut flowers decreased, we began producing orchids for home growing.

We started hybridizing orchids in the 1950's and developed our own modern laboratory for seed and tissue culture in the 1970's. Our hybridizing program has resulted in worldwide recognition for Carter & Holmes as a source for outstanding orchids - in particular, art-shade cattleyas. Today, we ship orchid plants of many genera to hobbyists and commercial growers throughout the United States and to many countries around the world.

If you have received an award on one of our plants, please let us know about it.

We welcome visitors to our greenhouses Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Some holiday or seasonal hours apply so please call ahead. If you cannot visit us in person, we hope you will telephone, write or e-mail your questions about our orchids, pricing or other matters.