Category E: Turf and Ornamentals Minnesota Pesticide Exam (Terms to Know)

Abiotic

related to factors or things that are separate and independent from living things; nonliving (air pollutants, wind, water, temperature)

Abiotic stresses

Caused by unfavorable growing conditions (drought, wind, flood)

Absorption

The movement of pesticides into plants and, to a lesser degree, soil microorganisms.

Adjuvant/Additive

Substance added to a pesticide to improve its effectiveness, usability or safety such as penetrants, spreader-stickers, storage stabilizers and wetting agents.

adventitious roots

roots produced by certain stems if roots are separated from the plant or if injury occurs.

Adsorption

Adhesion of an ultra thin layer of molecules to the surface of particles. The molecules do not penetrate the surface.

Aesthetic threshold

pest population density level when pest management methods must be applied to prevent reaching unacceptable levels of aesthetic damage to a plant or landscape

Alleopathy

chemical inhibition of one plant by another

Annual

A plant that completes its life cycle in one year

Aquatic life

Fish, invertebrates and others that live in water.

Bacteria/Bacterium

Single celled organisms, some of which cause disease in plants and animals

Bactericide

A chemical used to control bacteria.

Backflow

Reverse flow of a liquid (such as a pesticide) into a water supply. Backflow can occur during chemigation or when filling tanks.

Beneficial insects

Insects that are essential for pollination of plants or play a role in plant health care.

Biennial

A plant that requires two growing seasons to complete its life cycle

Biotic

living things

Broadcast shower

The uniform application of a pesticide or other material over an entire field or area.

Broadleaf plants

Plants with broad, rounded, or flattened leaves with netted veins. Examples: dandelions and roses. Different from the narrow, bladelike leaves with parallel veins of grasses, sedges, rushes, and onions.

Calibration

A practice of verifying and adjusting fert/pesticide application equipment to accurately apply a predetermined or calculated amount of product per area unit.

Chlorophyll

A pigment in chloroplast necessary for photosynthesis.

Chlorophyll A

Only pigment that can participate directly in the light reactions.

Chlorophyll B

accessory pigment, does not actively participate in photosynthesis.

Conifers

Needle-leaved or scale-leaved, mainly evergreen, cone-bearing trees or shrubs. Includes pines, spruces and firs.

Contact herbicides

Kill or stunts parts of the weed that are treated with the chemical. Most effective against annual weeds.

Control list

Prohibited noxious weeds for which efforts must be made to prevent the spread, maturation and dispersal of and propagating plants.

Controlled droplet

Rotary spray nozzles or controlled droplet applicators. Spray droplets fall nearly vertically onto the target. Can vary with cup diameter, speed and flow rates.

cultural practices

Methods of controlling a plant and the environment, such as tilling, fertilizing, mowing, pruning and watering.

Cuticle

Waxy layer on the outer protective layer of the leaf

Deciduous

Plants that lose their leaves at the end of each growing season.

Degradates

Chemical products formed when a pesticide breaks down.

Diagnose

Positive identification of a problem and its cause.

Dicots

plants with two cotyledons

Direct pesticide application

A precise application to a specific area or site, such as a basal application to woody plants, crack-and-crevice treatment in a building, or specially positioned nozzles so only weeds are sprayed during a band application to crops.

Economic Injury Level

The pest population density where pest damage causes a reduction in the value of the crop or plant that is greater than the cost of control.

Economic threshold

The pest population density level when pest management measures must be applied to prevent reaching the economic injury level. You may see the economic threshold called the "treatment threshold" or "action threshold."

entomologist

scientist who studies insects and sometimes arthopods

Eradicate list

Prohibited noxious weeds for which all above- and below- ground parts must be destroyed.

Environmental thresholds

The pest population density level when pest management measures must be applied to prevent reaching unacceptable damage to the environment

Fertilizer

A substance containing plant nutrient(s) that are used for its nutrient content to promote plant growth.

Fungi/Fungus

Non-chlorophyll-bearing plants that live as saprophytes or parasites. Some infect and cause disease in plants, animals or destroy wood and fiber products. Others are beneficial for decomposition.

Fungicide

A chemical used to control fungi.

Galls

Abnormal growth of leaf, stem or twig caused by the presence of a gall-making organism.

Herbaceous plants

Plants that do not develop woody tissues.

Impact

A change in the chemical, physical (habitat) or biological quality or a change in condition of a water body caused by external forces.

Indirect pesticide application

Unintentional or intentional treatment of pests through spraiyng or placement of a pesticide on a plant, rather than on the pest. IE:Bees may carry pollen contaminated with pesticides back to the hive where it can kill or harm the bees in the hive.

Insects

Arthropods characterized by a body composed of three segments and three pairs of legs

Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

A sustainable approach of controlling pest infestation and damage in an economical way while minimizing hazards to people, property, and the environment.

Invasive (species)

Species that are not native and can cause economic or environmental harm.

Invertebrate

A class of animals that lacks backbones. Insects, spiders, nematodes, snails, and slugs.

Leaching

The movement through soil of a pesticide or other chemical dissolved in water.

Location effects

Influences of site conditions, such as exposure, soil type and moisture on plants.

Meristem

Rapidly growing tissue

Misapplication

Placement of a pesticide or fertilizer beyond the target area or in improper amounts.

Mite

A small arthropod similar to an insect, but with eight legs, two body parts and no antennae.

Mode of action

The way in which a pesticide exerts a toxic effect on the target plant, animal, or microorganism.

Monocots

plants with one cotyledon

Nematicide

A chemical used to control nematodes.

Nematodes

Microscopic non-segmented roundworms. Colorless, wormlike animals that feed off organic matter. Many cause disease.

Non-selective herbicides

Chemicals that can kill or damage all plants when applied at adequate rates.

Non-target species

Plants or animals within or adjacent to a pesticide-treated area that are not the intended targets of a pesticide application.

Noxious weeds

Plants that MN law have identified as harmful to public health, the environment, public roads, crops,livestock and other property.

Parasitoids

Insects that lay their eggs on or in the bodies of their hosts. The larvae that hatch slowly consume the host until it is eventually killed.

Pathogen

A disease causing organism.

Persistence

Duration a pesticide or its breakdown products remain present and active in the environment.

Pesticide

A substance intended to prevent, destroy, repel or mitigate a pest.

Perennial

Plants that survive from year to year.

Phloem

Translocates carbohydrates and other organic compounds and mobile inorganic nutrients through the plant.

Photosynthesis

Conversion of light energy from the sun into chemical energy. Occurs in chloroplast.

Phytoplasmas

Small bacteria that lack a cell wall. Can cause disease in plants.

Plant symptoms

Abnormal conditions of plants that indicate disease or disorder

Pollination

The sexual propagation of a plant. Results when pollen (sperm) enters the pistil (ovary) of a flower.

Pollinators

Insects and other organisms that carry pollen from flower to flower.

Pollinator protection statements

EPA required statements on pesticide labels that provide information on the use of the product in a way that reduces its impact on pollinators.

Postemergence herbicide

A chemical applied to control weeds after they have emerged from the soil.

Preemergence Herbicide

A chemical applied to soil used to control weeds prior to germination.

Pressure sprayer

Sprays pesticide at a specific pressure and speed. Can be hand-carried compressed air or backpack sprayers.

Professionalism

the skill, good judgment, and polite behavior that is expected from a person who is trained to do a job well

Rhizomes

An underground stem that spreads to produce new aboveground shoots.

Runoff

The movement of water and associated materials over the top of the soil.

seed dispersal

Movement of the reproductive units (seeds) of a flowering plant away from the parent plant.

Selective herbicides

Controls certain types of plants, especially within other plants

Sensitive Sites

Areas particularly vulnerable to harm from pesticide exposure.

Sign

Evidence of a pest or problem, such as the pest, its parts or products.

Site

the crop, animal, structure, commodity, or area where a pesticide is applied to control pests.

Site evaluation

the process of inspecting and assessing a property to determine management needs.

soil injection

The placement of a pesticide below the surface of the soil. This is a common application method for fumigants and termiticides.

Solubility

The ability of a chemical to dissolve in a solvent, usually water.

Spray gun

Hand-held devices attached to a hose and tank, equipped with a trigger to regulate the application of the liquid from the tank.

Sprayer overlap

Intentional application on top of a previous application to account for reduced volumes of material applied at the edges of a fertilizer or herbicide application, to ensure adequate coverage.

Drop Spreader/Gravity Spreader

Applies uniformly sized dry particles to soil, water and sometimes foliage. Generally more precise.

Rotary Spreader

Distributes granules usually by means of a spinning disc or fan,

Stomata

Serve as sites for the exchange of gas and water vapor. Small pores among epidermal cells. Surrounded by guard cells, which regulate its opening and closing.

Surfactant

An inert ingredient that improves the properties of a pesticide mixture.

Symptom

Alteration of appearance in a plant due to a pest or problem. (galls, stunting, leaf spots)

Systemic herbicides

Absorbed by roots or foliage and then are translocated to other parts of the plant. Often used to control perennial weeds, although they also work on annuals.

Toxicity

the degree to which a substance is biologically harmful.

Transformation

Change in a pesticide's chemical structure

Translocation

Movement of water and other nutrients through the organs of a plant

Transportation

The movement of a pesticide away from its intended site of action.

Tree implant

Insertion of a capsule filled with insecticide into a hole drilled through the bark into the active xylem of a tree to treat for insects.