1993 National Nursery Landscape Exam

Name:

Multiple Choice

Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

The worst time to plow soil for a new lawn is:

a.	during the late summer	c.	when the soil is very wet
b.	when the soil is moist	d.	during the late fall

Which caption would best explain Figure 1?

a.	Trees planted too close to the house prevent sun rays from striking the roof	c.	Deciduous trees cause a problem with sunlight penetration in summer
b.	Deciduous trees help cool the house in summer and warm the house in winter	d.	Evergreen trees should be used around the house to avoid the problem shown in the drawing

Which of the jobs below is one that an arborculturist is most likely to perform?

a.	construct a walk	c.	install landscape timbers
b.	maintain a rose bed	d.	maintain trees

Nursery liners are usually sold to:

a.	home owners	c.	other nurserymen
b.	landscape installation companies	d.	landscape maintenance companies

In general, it is best to aerate cool season grasses in the __________, and warm season grasses in __________.

a.	fall or spring; late spring or summer	c.	summer or fall; fall or winter
b.	spring or summer; fall or spring	d.	winter or summer; fall or early spring

Which of the following is false?

a.	A Baldcypress is a deciduous conifer	c.	A daylily is an herbaceous perennial
b.	10-10-10 is a complete fertilizer	d.	A dandelion is a cool season annual weed

Which is correct about the oil level in Figure 2?

a.	The oil level is ok	c.	One quart of oil should be added before cranking this engine again
b.	The oil in this engine should be changed	d.	Add oil immediately -- two quarts will probably be required. The oil level should never be allowed to get this low

An abnormal growth of plant tissue, usually caused by disease or insects, is called a(n):

a.	canker	c.	gamete
b.	internode	d.	gall

A mass of tissue that forms around a wound on a plant such as the base of a cutting is called:

a.	callus tissue	c.	cambium overgrowth
b.	bud tissue	d.	phloem fill

10.

Which of the following is true regarding the treatment of trees on a construction site?

a.	Trees have deep roots, and removing up to six inches of soil from the surface will not hurt them	c.	The larger the tree, the more abuse it can take
b.	Adding up to six inches of soil around trees will not harm the trees	d.	Trees are very sensitive to adding or removing soil around them

11.

Which of the following is FALSE?

a.	Apple scab is a serious disease of ornamental apples	c.	Apple scab can be controlled by spraying, but it is expensive and time consuming -- a task homeowners usually are not willing to do
b.	Only scab-resistant varieties of crabapples should be planted because they will never get the disease	d.	Some varieties of crabapples are more susceptible to apple scab than other varieties

12.

What can be said about the availability of nutrients based on Figure 3?

a.	The availability of potassium and sulphur is inversely proportional	c.	Nutrients are generally most available when pH is in the 6.5 to 7.5 range
b.	If the pH is extremely high or low the availability of nutrients generally increases	d.	Iron chlorosis is most likely to occur when the pH is lower than 6.0.

13.

Poorly drained soils grow poor crops because:

a.	the roots receive insufficient air	c.	the soil warms too quickly in the spring
b.	the organic matter content is too high	d.	the roots take up too much water

14.

Phloem and xylem can be found in:

a.	complete fertilizers	c.	stems
b.	organic pesticides	d.	micronutrient fertilizers

15.

When making a compost pile, a one-fourth inch layer of soil is added to the top of each ten inch layer of organic matter. The main function of the soil is to:

a.	press down the organic matter so that decomposition can start	c.	help hold in the heat of decomposition
b.	insure that the pile is inoculated with decomposing microbes	d.	release nutrients into the pile

16.

Which plants are usually propagated by seed?

a.	pines, oaks and black gum	c.	azaleas, camellias and yew
b.	forsythia, holly and philodendron	d.	daylily, Buxus and forsythia

17.

The calibration of spray equipment is important because it:

a.	helps protect the environment	c.	improves application accuracy
b.	maximizes investment in crop protection chemicals	d.	all of the above

18.

Front walks leading to the door of the home should be at least ____ feet wide

a.	2	c.	3.5
b.	2.5	d.	5.5

19.

Which piece of equipment is shown in Figure 4?

a.	vertical mower	c.	core aerator
b.	spike aerator	d.	plug planter

20.

Chemicals should be stored in:

a.	a cool room such as a basement	c.	the lath house
b.	a free-standing, locked building	d.	a refrigerated storage cabinet

21.

Chemicals sprayed in tend to drift more.

a.	a coarse stream	c.	a fine mist
b.	large droplets	d.	very large drops

22.

Which of the following is true?

a.	Oak leaf gall is a serious disease, justifying an extensive spray program	c.	Oak leaf galls are generally caused by insects and are usually insignificant to tree health
b.	Oak leaf galls shrink and disappear after spraying with a fungicide	d.	Oak leaf gall is caused by air pollution

23.

Skin, eyes, and lungs should be protected when:

a.	mixing chemicals	c.	applying chemicals
b.	cleaning and adjusting the sprayer	d.	all of the above

24.

It is important to use a backflow preventer, as in Figure 5, when applying pesticides or other chemicals through a hose-end sprayer to:

a.	prevent chemicals from backing up into the drinking water supply	c.	reduce pressure on the pump
b.	maintain constant pressure so the chemical is applied evenly	d.	prevent damage to the pump by surges of back pressure

25.

When working with pesticides, the minimum amount of protective clothing that should be worn is:

a.	a long-sleeved shirt	c.	socks and sturdy shoes
b.	a pair of long-legged trousers	d.	all of the above

26.

Which of the following is NOT an appropriate suggestion if a customer asks for trees that have good fall color?

a.	sugar maple	c.	ginkgo
b.	black gum	d.	Canadian hemlock

27.

A restricted use crop protection chemical is:

a.	one that can be purchased and applied by anyone	c.	a chemical requiring the highest level of care in its use and handling
b.	one that requires no special care in mixing, use, storing, and disposing	d.	an arbitrary classification

28.

Plants that are very tolerant of dry conditions are called:

a.	epiphytes	c.	monoecious
b.	xerophytes	d.	dryophytes

29.

When a pollen grain adheres to the stigma, _____ has taken place

a.	pollination	c.	hybridization
b.	fertilization	d.	scarification

30.

What is the official signal word that denotes the lowest toxicity rating?

a.	Caution	c.	Tolerance
b.	Danger	d.	Warning

31.

An herbicide that moves through the plant from the site of uptake is a:

a.	contact herbicide	c.	water-soluble herbicide
b.	translocated (systemic) herbicide	d.	pre-emergence herbicide

32.

What operation is being performed in Figure 6?

a.	wounding the cutting for better absorption and to provide a larger area for root growth	c.	removing the buds to expose more cambium area
b.	sharpening the cutting for easy sticking into the rooting media	d.	marking the cutting for easy cultivar identification

33.

Methods of establishing turfgrass in a lawn include:

a.	plugging, sodding and sprigging	c.	division, sprigging, and scarification
b.	grading, sprigging and broadcasting	d.	grading, broadcasting and hydroseeding

34.

A soil is at the correct moisture content for potting if:

a.	approximately two tablespoons of water can be squeezed from one handful of soil	c.	when it is squeezed in the palm of the hand it will not make a ball
b.	water can be easily squeezed from the soil	d.	when squeezed in the palm of the hand, it makes a loosely held ball

35.

Which of the following is true about the pruning procedure illustrated in Figure 7?

a.	The four-cut method is being properly performed	c.	The final cut should be made as close to the bark ridge as possible
b.	It appears that the three-cut method is being properly performed	d.	The three-cut method is being performed in reversed order

36.

The most ideal way to provide heat for rooting cuttings is with a system that warms the:

a.	air above the mist benches	c.	misting water
b.	air around the leaves of the cuttings	d.	rooting media

37.

Only _____ lumber should be used for building outdoor structures for plants

a.	creosote treated	c.	pressure treated
b.	malathion dipped	d.	rough

38.

Sooty mold is most likely to occur on plants infested with:

a.	rust	c.	aphids.
b.	mites	d.	lady beetles

39.

The horticulture teacher wanted to have one of every landscape plant available for her plant identification course so she had the class plant a great variety of plants in the school landscape. The result was a landscape design that ignored the principle of:

a.	balance	c.	proportion
b.	simplicity	d.	focalization

40.

The trend in nursery crop production is toward more ____ plants and less field grown plants.

a.	container grown	c.	balled and burlapped
b.	greenhouse grown	d.	bareroot

41.

One use of the tool shown in Figure 8 is to:

a.	roll down newly laid sod	c.	roll down pesticides so that they make good contact
b.	crush and kill weeds before planting seeds	d.	firm the soil after an application of fertilizer

42.

What is the neutral point on the pH scale?

a.	0.0	c.	5.0
b.	3.0	d.	7.0

43.

One reason Latin is used in the binomial system for naming plants is because:

a.	it is the oldest language	c.	it makes nursery workers sound more professional
b.	botanical names are never changed	d.	there may be several common names for the same plant

44.

What method is most often used to propagate azaleas?

a.	cuttings	c.	seeding
b.	macro stemming	d.	tissue culture

45.

What is a disadvantage of sexual plant propagation?

a.	greater space is required than for asexual methods	c.	it is more expensive
b.	automated mist systems are required	d.	plants may lack uniformity

46.

Seeds may be scarified by:

a.	treating them with acid	c.	holding them in a cool, dry environment
b.	placing them in refrigerated storage	d.	treating them with hormones

47.

Which plant is often grafted?

a.	black gum	c.	Adam's needle
b.	dogwood	d.	mugo pine

48.

Indolebutyric acid (IBA) is used in nursery operations to:

a.	induce flowering	c.	retard plant growth
b.	promote rooting	d.	speed seed germination

49.

The art of forming the growth of plants into the shape of

animals is called:

a.	Bonsai	c.	Topiary
b.	Espalier	d.	Zenchu

50.

Plants showing symptoms of nitrogen deficiency have:

a.	purple veins in the leaves	c.	abnormally long internodes
b.	tiny brown spots between the leaf veins	d.	yellowing leaves