Barbara Coelho, a retired Probation Officer, and her husband, Roger, also retired, have been gardening for years and currently farm 40 acres in Patterson. Barbara has always enjoyed growing a variety of plants from Orchids to Bonsai to Fuchsias to Cactus and Succulents, and began growing Cactus and Succulents seriously bout 1979 when she and her husband moved to Patterson where it was too hot and windy to grow more delicate plants. She has an Associate Science Degree in Plant Science and is a Certified Pesticide Applicator. She judges and exhibits at Cactus and Succulent Shows, and judges at the Stanislaus County Fair.

Barbara is a past member of both the Fuchsia and Bonsai Society. She is currently a member of the Cactus & Succulent Society in both Stockton and Sacramento, and garden clubs in Patterson and Modesto, and Vice President of the Newman Garden Club.