Carlos was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, and received his undergraduate degree in chemistry from Universidad Simón Bolívar.  He pursued his doctoral degree in Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry at UC Davis, California.  Carlos lives in New Jersey and has been cultivating orchid plants in his home for the last 25 years.  He uses his technical discipline to document his horticultural experiences in magazines such as Orchids and Orchid Digest, and has been delivering lectures on the care of orchid plants in residential indoor environments for local garden clubs and orchid societies for the last 15 years.