- This event has passed.
Talks at Vizcaya with Suzanne Koptur: Uses of South Florida Plants
Join us for a new season of Talks at Vizcaya where we explore topics surrounding the estate. This season we will discuss themes around Vizcaya’s historic kitchen and learn from experts about cooking traditions, urban farming, and more!
The Uses of Local Plants by Early Settlers in Southern Florida
The flora of southern Florida has plants from both temperate and tropical origins, providing residents with a wide array of products to explore and use. The many ways in which plants were and are utilized were not all novel to settlers. The knowledge comes from other places in the world, including building materials, remedies, food, spices, decorations, and more. Some uses, especially those known to indigenous peoples, are still being learned. This presentation will highlight some of the most common and most interesting plants, an introduction for those who are interested in knowing and using the plants around us.
Featured Speaker: Suzanne Koptur
Suzanne Koptur is an ecologist and professor Emerita of Biological Sciences at Florida International University, where she taught undergrad and graduate courses in ecology, plant ecology, and botany. Her research is focused on plant/animal interactions, especially in the areas of anti-herbivore defenses of plants and pollination biology. She received her BS in Botany from the University of Michigan and PhD from the University of California, Berkeley; she spent several postdoctoral years at the University of Iowa and the University of York (U.K.), before joining the faculty of FIU in 1985. Her doctoral research was conducted in Costa Rica, primarily in the Monteverde cloud forest, on plant/animal interactions of Inga species (mimosoid legume trees); her longest research interest is biotic defense supported by ants and other beneficial insects attracted by plants’ extrafloral nectar. She has conducted many studies of floral biology and breeding systems of plants in South Florida and the neotropics and received two Fulbrights to pursue research in Mexico. Many of her students have pursued meaningful careers in academia, government, teaching, and consulting.
TICKET OPTIONS
ONLINE TICKETS ARE REQUIRED.
GENERAL ADMISSION TICKETS
$5 general admission; FREE for students with valid ID at admissions
VIZCAYA MEMBERS
FREE for Vizcaya Members.
MORE INFORMATION
All refund requests must be submitted 24 hours prior to the event date.
To cancel member tickets email chris.rodriguez@vizcaya.org. All other ticket holders make refund requests on the Eventbrite sales page. No-shows and late arrivals are not eligible for a refund.
Vizcaya members get discounted tickets to community programs like this! They also get unlimited free daytime visits to the estate and other great perks.
Learn more about these perks and check out the membership options by clicking below.
LEARN MOREEvery person, regardless of age or member status, is required to have a ticket and will not be admitted without one. Tickets must be purchased in advance and are not sold at door.
Making a donation to Vizcaya Museum and Gardens does not grant entry to this program. Health and safety regulations remain in place. This program is rain or shine.
To promote inclusion for all, Vizcaya ensures that all community programs, after-hour and weekend events for locals, feature activities that are physically accessible to all visitors. While not all areas of the estate are wheelchair accessible, community programs are purposefully located in areas without stairs or that can be accessed via a ramp.
To leaen more about accessibility at Vizcaya, please click here.
By entering Vizcaya’s premises, you consent to your likeness being captured in photos, videos or audio as well as the release, publication, exhibition and reproduction of these. For more details, see the Film and Photography Notice.
