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PA Pesticide Applicator Exam Lawn and
Turf Questions and Answers Already
Passed
What are some of the basic principles of Integrated pest management? ✔✔1.) PREVENTION: Produce healthy plants that resist plants: (Selecting healthy plants, using certified seed, providing good growing conditions, and making a good match between the plant and the site)
2.) MONITOR AND IDENTIFY THE PEST: Identify the problem: (Finding out whether the damage to a particular plant is caused by a pest or by an environmental condition such as freezing or drought and always determine the exact pest that you are dealing with)
3.) SET ACTION THRESHOLDS: Expect some pests and tolerate some damage: (Deciding how many pests and how much damage to tolerate)
4.) CONTROL: Use pesticides as a last choice-Not a first choice
What should you do in an IPM program? ✔✔Produce healthy plants that can resist pests
What is Phytotoxicity? ✔✔A toxic effect by a compound on plant growth
Which method will NOT help monitor cutworms? ✔✔Pitfall traps
What is Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)? ✔✔A common bacterium that kills many types of caterpillars
When should you apply an insecticide? ✔✔When the insect is at its most vulnerable stage
What is the Milky spore disease? ✔✔A bacterial disease that is caused by the bacterium, Bacillus popilliae, and kills Japanese beetles
What do you do to control fire ants? ✔✔Use a combination of broadcast bait and mound treatments
Sod webworms... ✔✔Spin silk webbing near the soil in turf
An insecticide applied to control white grubs... ✔✔Should be watered in to reach the soil
Mole crickets... ✔✔Have only one generation per year
What are 3 ways to find turf insects in the soil? ✔✔1.) Scouting
2.) Sampling
3.) Monitoring
What are 3 types of organisms that are used in biological control of turf insects? ✔✔1.) Predators
2.) Parasites
3.) Pathogens
Why should some insecticide formulations be watered in? ✔✔Most soil insecticides for control of white grubs or bill bugs need to be watered in because when the soil is dry, insects like what grubs and mole crickets burrow deeper into the soil and are hard to control. Also, irrigating before the pesticide is applied helps move these insects closer to the soil surface where they are more likely to encounter the insecticide
What is Scouting? ✔✔Looking for destructive turf grass insects and identifying them
What is Sampling? ✔✔Selecting a pest that is appropriate for the location and habits of the pest
What is Monitoring? ✔✔Knowing whether the pest is causing enough problems to justify control
What is an Endophyte? ✔✔A fungus that lives within the plant
What are Parasites? ✔✔Nematodes that search out insects and enter their bodies through natural openings or by drilling through the skin and once inside the insect, the nematodes release bacteria that kill the pest within hours
What is a situation where a broad spectrum, non-selective herbicide could be used on turf? ✔✔When your grass is basically all weeds or you are trying to kill the dead grass to put new sod
When would weather conditions cause herbicide failure? ✔✔If the weather is too hot, too dry, or too cold
How do you use herbicides to slow the development of resistant weeds? ✔✔1.) Making fewer herbicide applications
2.) Using herbicides that have different modes of action
3.) Mowing to remove flowers before seeds form
What is the best approach to control yellow nutsedge? ✔✔Apply herbicide applications every 2 to 3 weeks
What is the best approach to control winter annuals? ✔✔Mid to late fall and early winter using a selective, post emergence broadleaf herbicides
What are the guidelines for use of post emergence herbicides? ✔✔1.) Do not apply post emergence herbicides to newly seeded grass until it has been mowed at least 3 times
2.) Wait 4 to 6 weeks before applying herbicide to a newly sodded area
3.) Do not apply when rain is expected
4.) Try to avoid mowing a treated area for at least 3 days after application
5.) Wait 3 to 4 weeks before seeding bare spots left by killed weeds. Do not seed until the area has received rain or irrigation to break down any herbicide remaining in the soil
What are the guidelines for use of pre emergence herbicides? ✔✔1.) You may need to wait 2 to 4 months before it is safe to reseed. Read the label
2.) Do not use a pre emergence herbicide before laying sod or at the time of turf grass seeding unless indicated on the label
3.) Do not add a surfactant or wetting agent to a pre emergence herbicide unless indicated on the label
4.) Wait until after new turf grass seedlings have been mowed 3 or 4 times before applying a pre emergence herbicide
5.) Return clippings to the turf grass area for 2 to 3 weeks after the herbicide application to give time for any herbicide absorbed by the leaves to be returned to the thatch layer and contribute to the chemical barrier
6.) Try to avoid use of pre emergence herbicide on thin, weak, or damaged turf
What is Plant Susceptibility? ✔✔Killing or injuring of a plant by a herbicide
What is a Rhizome? ✔✔Creeping, horizontal underground stem, producing shoots above ground and roots below
What is a Tuber? ✔✔Thickened storage portion of a rhizome or stolon
What is a Stolon? ✔✔Creeping, above ground stem that roots at the nodes
Annual weeds... ✔✔grow, flower, go to seed, and die within 12 months
What is the difference between diseases and disorders? ✔✔Disorders are caused by unfavorable growing conditions such as temperature extremes, soil compaction, injury from machines and chemicals, or too little or too much water. Diseases are caused by pathogens such as fungi, bacteria, and viruses, which can multiply and spread from plant to plant
What are some turf symptoms that would lead you to test for Nematodes? ✔✔Infested areas tend to wilt prematurely, even when adequate soil moisture is available and short, stunted, and brown root systems from excessive feeding damage
What is the difference between Protectant (contact) fungicides and Systemic fungicides? ✔✔Protectant fungicides coat a susceptible plant to create a protective barrier against fungal infection. The turf grass does not absorb them and they do not circulate (translocate) within the plant. Systemic fungicides circulate (translocate) within the turf grass plant and can control fungi already in the plant. Fungicide is absorbed through the cuticle (waxy outer layer) of the plant in several hours so that it will not be washed off by rain or degraded by sunlight
When finding a turf grass site that seems to be suffering from disease, what factors do you want to consider? ✔✔1.) Cultivar
2.) Mixture
3.) Fertilizer and pH
4.) Sharp blades
5.) Mowing height
What are the stand symptoms of Brown patch? ✔✔Irregular rings or patches of brown or tan foliage become visible and are especially evident on close-cut grasses early in the morning and grayish "smoke rings" appear around the patches
What are the plant symptoms of Brown Patch? ✔✔Irregularly shaped gray or tan lesions with dark brown borders are present on infected leaves
What are some ways to control Brown Patch? ✔✔1.) Good surface and subsurface drainage
2.) Avoid excessive irrigation. Irrigate early (before sunrise) to reduce duration of leaf wetness
3.) Promote air circulation by pruning or removing trees and shrubs or installing electric fans around putting greens
4.) Avoid high nitrogen fertilization, especially during warm weather
5.) Apply preventative fungicides in late spring when night temperatures stay above 60 degrees
What is Brown Patch? ✔✔Symptoms of diseases that are caused by the fungus Rhizoctonia solani and is the the most common disease of all Tall fescue in the Southeast. This is a big
What are some ways to control Fairy ring? ✔✔1.) Remove stumps and other wood material from the root zone before establishing a turf grass area. Fairy rings will develop where wood is left in the root zone
2.) Deep tilling and application of an approved fumigant have shown limited success
3.) Symptoms may be masked by adequate irrigation or fertilization with nitrogen and/or iron
*Fairy rings are very difficult to control
What is Pink snow mold? ✔✔Disease of cool season turf grasses and may spread by mycelial growth or movement of spores which are produced in enormous amounts on diseased tissue
What are the stand symptoms of Pink snow mold? ✔✔Circular patches 2-6 inces in diameter develop during prolonged periods of cool wet weather. If severe, spots merge to form large areas of diseased turf. The grass on the outer edge of the patches generally appears water-soaked (wet and slimy) with profuse gray or pink mycelia of the fungus present in high humidity
What are some ways to control Pink snow mold? ✔✔1.) Maintain balanced fertility levels and optimal soil pH based on soil tests
2.) Mow frequently at appropriate cutting heights
3.) Avoid fertilization during periods of slow turf grass growth in winter
What is Gray leaf spot? ✔✔Very common disease of St. Augustine grass and occurs in very hot, humid weather and is generally more severe in newly established turf areas, in shady locations, and in locations with poor air movement. The fungus forms spores that are very easily spread by wind and moisture or by equipment movement and other human activities
What are the stand symptoms of Gray leaf spot? ✔✔In hot, humid weather, turf infected with gray leaf spot looks scorched and ragged
What are the plant symptoms of Gray leaf spot? ✔✔Infections may occur on all above-ground plant parts and begin as small brown-to-tan leaf spots with a distinct brown-to-purple border or band surrounding the infected tissue. Lesions may become very numerous on leaves, and individual spots may expand to consume leaves completely and may girdle stolons of St. Augustine grass
What are some ways to control Gray leaf spot? ✔✔1.) Mow at recommended height. Infrequent mowing and high cutting height may favor disease
2.) Improve air movement and light penetration in areas prone to chronic infections
What are some of the ways to control Pythium blight? ✔✔1.) Provide good surface and subsurface drainage
2.) Removal of shrubs, tree limbs, etc., to increase air movement and light penetration will improve conditions commonly associated with chronic problems with Pythium blight
3.) Installing fans near bent grass putting greens will increase air circulation and reduce leaf wetness
4.) Minimize nitrogen applications to cool-season turf grasses when weather conditions are favorable for Pythium development
5.) Fungicide treated seed has improved control of damping-off and seeding blight
6.) Fungicide provides good control when applied on a preventative basis during conditions that favor disease development
What are some of the ways to control Spring dead spot? ✔✔1.) In areas prone to harsh winters, select less susceptible cultivars. Bermuda grass cultivars with good cold tolerance also tend to be more resistant to spring dead spot
2.) Aerify and dethatch regularly
3.) Stop nitrogen applications to bermuda grass 6 weeks prior to the expected rate of dormancy
4.) Use fertilizer such as ammonium sulfate
What is a Host? ✔✔Organism that is invaded by a plant parasite, which obtains its nutrients, and reproduces upon it
What is a Sign? ✔✔Visible pathogen or its parts or products on a host plant
What are Bactericides? ✔✔Chemicals that are used for control of bacterial diseases
