Thursday Speaker Series
Our weekly event series features a unique program every Thursday night, offering a diverse range of entertainment, workshops, and activities. Each week brings something new and exciting, ensuring there's always something for everyone to enjoy!
Date: Every Thursday Evening
Time: 6:00pm – 7:00pm
Fee: Included with general admission
Aug. 28 - Bats in Palms with Josue Ayala
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Join Environmental Education Specialist Josue Ayala as they explore some of the fascinating bat species that call the Rio Grande Valley home. Learn about the mysterious evolution of bats, their unique behaviors, and the special relationship between certain bat species and our native Sabal Palm.
Josue Ayala is a Texas Master Naturalist and serves as Vice President of the Native Plant Project, helping to lead community efforts in native plant conservation, education, and outreach. Additionally, Josue is an Environmental Education Specialist at Quinta Mazatlán, developing and delivering nature-based programs to engage audiences of all ages in discovering the ecological richness of the Rio Grande Valley.
Sep. 4 - Financing Sustainability with USGBC South Texas Regional Council
TIME: 5:30pm - 7:15pm
Join us USGBC South Texas Regional Council for an engaging presentation exploring how financial incentive can drive energy efficiency and sustainable objectives in both the public and private sectors. Three featured speakers will share success stories and practical finding insights: from city-wide green infrastructure initiatives to university campus upgrades, to privately owned facilities through the use of programs such as SECO and PACE. Whether you're a policymaker, facility manager, business owner, or financial institution, you'll gain valuable insights into grants, loans, and other funding opportunities that make sustainable building improvements not only possible but profitable.
Speakers:
- Jeff Underwood, City Manager, City of Alton, Texas
- Lani May, UTSA Director of the Office of Sustainability
- Charlene Heydinger, President Texas PACE Authority Program
This program is $10 a ticket with light snacks included.
Sep. 11 - Flower Vs. Bee: An exploration of pollination syndromes with Devin Johnston
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Flowering plants and insects have a love story over 130 million years old. Looking at a flower can tell the observer about the type of pollinators it may (or may not) attract and give insight into the evolutionary pressures that plant may have faced in the past. From specialists to generalists, explore the wide and wild world of bees and the flowers that love them.
Devin Johnston is a professional beekeeper and hobbyist “bee bother-er”. She spends her weekdays working to remove nuisance, feral honey bee colonies from a wide variety of properties and teaching bee safety classes to local organizations. Devin can be found enjoying sweaty hikes, touching spiky cacti, and hanging out in ditches trying to document RGV native bees on the weekends.
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Sep. 18 - Use of UAVs for Ecosystem Modeling and Mapping with Carlos Garcia-Patlan
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Explore the application of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) in Environmental Sciences, highlighting their role in data collection, monitoring, and analysis of environmental conditions with Carlos Garcia-Patlan, Ecologist for the Texas A&M Forest Service.
Carlos Garcia-Patlan Graduated with a bachelors degree in environmental sciences at UTRGV, where they worked at the Agroecology lab doing soil work.
Shortly after he received a master's degree in Agricultural, Environmental, and Sustainability Sciences at UTRGV, with a focus on the effects of cover cropping on commodity crops by collecting in-field samples and through aerial imagery. While completing his masters, Carlos worked for the USDA ARS, with the Aerial Applications Technology office, learning more about the use of UAVs in the field of agriculture. Today, Carlos is an ecologist for the Texas A&M Forest Service, working in the Urban and Community Forestry program, guiding communities toward sustainable management of their community forests.
Oct. 2 - RGV Ecological History with Javier de Leon
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Join Javier de León for a journey into the ecological past of the Rio Grande Valley, delving into what we know about the historical plant and animal communities of the region.
Javier is the Park Superintendent at Estero Llano Grande State Park, one of the premier birding locations in the RGV, and serves as advisor to the local Texas Master Naturalist chapters.
This program is included with park admission fees.
Oct. 9 - Cacti of the RGV with Ken King
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Uncover the incredible diversity of native cactus species in the Rio Grande Valley with Ken King. You'll learn how to identify them, where they grow, and how to care for them.
Ken is the co-author of "Plants of Deep South Texas", the most comprehensive guide to native plants of the Rio Grande Valley, and serves on the Native Plant Project's Board of Directors.
This program is included with park admission fees.
Oct. 16 - Planta Nativa VIP Night
TIME: 6:30pm - 9:30pm
The Planta Nativa VIP (Very Important Plants) Night is all about native plants, building community, and enjoying an evening in the atmosphere of Quinta Mazatlan. The keynote presentation, "Gardens of Texas: Growing with Resilience," by Pam Penick will inspire all of us to grow gardens that endure challenges and grow stronger.
The event also features a marketplace with native plant sales, seed giveaways, food vendors, wine and beer vendors, and educational outreach tables with local organizations who work with native plants.
The event includes free off-site parking and shuttle service from 1400 Wichita Avenue, McAllen, Texas.
Oct. 23 - Container Gardening with Matt Kaufman
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Learn how you can grow a diverse and beautiful container garden of native plants with Matt Kauffman. This program includes in-depth information on types of containers to use, soil mixtures, and tips on keeping your plants healthy and happy.
Matt has grown an incredible diversity of native plants in the Rio Grande Valley, from under-used common plants to rare species that should be in more gardens.
Program included with park admission fees.
Oct. 30 - Native Edible Plants with John Brush
TIME: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Native plants aren't just great for wildlife, they're tasty too! Learn about native edible plant gardening with John Brush, from annual "weeds" to perennial trees and everything in-between.
John is the Urban Ecologist at Quinta Mazatlan. He and his wife dedicate more than 600 square feet of garden to native edible plants and enjoy adding them to their cooking.
This program is included with park admission fees.
Show Your Support
Support Quinta Mazatlán by becoming a member, giving your time as a volunteer or a donation. Your gift helps us care for the conservation of plants, education for children & adults, programs for the community & the mission & goals of Quinta Mazatlán.