LOWA COMMERCIAL APPLICATOR LICENSE EXAM
ACTUAL EXAM COMPLETE 200 QUESTIONS WITH
DETAILED ANSWERS
What is the TDA? - ANSWERTexas Department of Agriculture, the primary agency
regulating pesticides in Texas
IPM - ANSWERIntegrated Pest Management
What is IPM? - ANSWERcomprehensive approach that uses biological, cultural,
physical, and chemical controls in a careful and environmentally sound manner to
control pests
biotic factors - ANSWERbacteria, fungi, insects, mites, and viruses
the most common biotic pests in landscapes are diseases, insects, and weeds
abiotic factors - ANSWERsoil compaction, construction injury, soil fertility, moisture, pH,
and environmental conditions that can weaken plants
biotic vs abiotic - ANSWERbiotic problems usually affect only one or a few plant
species, abiotic problems often affect several or many species
applied controls - ANSWERPest control measures used by humans. These include
biological, cultural, mechanical, host plant selection, and chemical control.
plant selection - ANSWERchoose all landscape plants according to their water
requirements, shade tolerance, and susceptibility to pests
chemical control - ANSWERUse of pesticides or herbicides to manage an unwanted
organism(s) (photo: herbicide used to kill dandelions)
preventative applications - ANSWERapplying pesticide before the problem appears
reactive or curative treatments - ANSWERoccur after you notice the pest or its damage
protecting water resources - ANSWERalways use pesticides and herbicides as
instructed
pesticide movement - ANSWERlateral movement with runoff or sediment; leaching into
saturated zone; must be water soluble; also significant transport by wind and rain
drift - ANSWERthe unintended movement of pesticides through the air during or after
application to an area other than the intended target
,runoff - ANSWERmovement of pesticides across the treated surface when they fall on
an impervious surface such as a sidewalk or parking lot and contaminate the runoff
water
leaching - ANSWERwhen chemicals move downward through the soil in the water
pesticide residue - ANSWERthe trace amount of pesticide that remains in the
environment after it is applied
pesticide degradation - ANSWERall pesticides break down, or degrade, after application
the speed of degradation depends on the chemical structure and other environmental
factors such as moisture, temperature, and sunlight
resistance management - ANSWERsteps taken by applicators to avoid or reduce the
effects of pesticide resistance
pesticide adjuvants - ANSWERproducts designed to make pesticides more effective
such as: surfactants (wetting agents reduce surface tension), stickers (makes pesticide
remain on plant longer), colorants or dyes (mark areas that have been sprayed)
insect pests of ornamentals - ANSWERsucking pests, chewing pests, beetles,
miscellaneous, wood-boring insects, & gall-forming pests
sucking pests - ANSWERaphids, scales, mealybugs, whiteflies, lace bugs, cicadas,
thrips, spider mites
signs of sucking pests - ANSWERwhen foliage is bleached, bronzed, stippled (flecked),
or yellowed but leaf surface looks physically sound
aphids - ANSWERsometimes called plant lice, small and appear green, blueish green,
yellow-green, reddish brown, or nearly black.
some appear wooly or powdery because of the waxy covering on their bodies
many species occur on ornamental plant foliage
scales - ANSWERcottonycushion scale, obscure scale, euonymus scale, wax scales,
and crapemyrtle bark scale
mealybugs - ANSWERtype of scale insect that is covered with a mealy or waxy
secretion
rhodesgrass mealybug of turgrass and longtailed mealybug on ornamentals
whiteflies - ANSWERPowdery insects with four white wings, sucking insect
lace bugs - ANSWERsuck sap from the leaf undersides of evergreen and deciduous
tress and shrubs
, cicadas - ANSWERare not considered plant pests
thrips - ANSWERserious pests of ornamentals because of their damage to leaves and
flowers while also transmitting some plant diseases such as tomato spotted wilt
usually attack tender growing tissue of plants
often reinfest flowering plants, particularly roses
spider mites - ANSWERamong the most harmful and persistent
not pests but belong with spiders and ticks in the order Acarina
generally avoid chemical treatment until visible damage as mites can develop
resistance to miticides very rapidly
chewing pests - ANSWERcaterpillars, beetles, leafminers, wood-boring insects, gall-
forming pests
caterpillars - ANSWERcankerworms, walnut caterpillars, bagworms, leaf rollers, leaf
tiers, & leaf crumplers, tent caterpillars, fall webworm, genista caterpillar
beetles - ANSWERelm leaf
wood-boring insects - ANSWERgenerally secondary invaders
only infect plants when they are stressed or in poor condition
systemic insecticides - ANSWERideal for treating whole plants (bark, leaves, or roots)
can be injected into the vascular system of the plants
effective against many sucking pests and some chewing pests
have a relatively long residual life, kill fewer, beneficial insects, protect newly expanding
foliage not present during application
insect pests of turfgrass - ANSWERsucking pests & chewing pests
sucking pests of turfgrass - ANSWERsouthern chinch bugs, bermudagrass mites
southern chinch bugs - ANSWERamong the most economically damaging insect pests
of st. augustinegrass in texas during the summer
prefer hot, dry weather and open sunny areas
bermudagrass mites - ANSWERmicroscopic cigar-shaped bodies and two pairs of legs
cause damage by sucking juices from the plants
infested grass will appear pale and stunted
white grubs - ANSWERroughly 100 species in texas
cause more indirect damage than direct damage as they attract other forms of wildlife
that tear up the grass in search of them to eat
most harmful species in texas are the june beetle and the southern masked chafer