Prepare for the Illinois Pesticide Applicator exam with these practice questions and answers. This guide covers general standards, safety procedures, environmental protection, and Illinois Department of Agriculture regulations.
Q: 1. The goal of IPM isn’t to eliminate the entire pest population but….
Answer: To avoid adverse effects on humans wildlife and the environment
Q: 2. Which of the following words is that number of pests per plant or the amount of damage to a plant at which point control measures should begin?
Answer: Economic Threshold
Q: 3. What can be said about insects?
Answer: They have three pairs of jointed legs.
Q: 4. Which of the following is an incomplete life cycle?
Answer: Egg nymph and adult.
Q: 5. The disease that is generally the result of unfavorable growing conditions such as temperature or moisture extremes soil compaction pesticide or fertilizer excess etc..?
Answer: Noninfectious Disease
Q: 6. The first step in planning a successful weed control program is?
Answer: Identify the weed (scouting)
Q: 7. Broadleaf weeds differ from grasses how?
Answer: They have netted veins that are usually less elongated than that of grass leaves.
Q: 8. This weed germinates in the spring develops a root system and a low-growing cluster of leaves called a rosette?
Answer: Biennial
Q: 9. The part of the pesticide that kills is the?
Answer: Active ingredient
Q: 10. Wettable powders when mixed with water….
Answer: Require agitation
Q: 11. What do Surfactants do?
Answer: Decrease the surface tension of water allowing the water carrier to spread over the surface.
Q: 12. Can you mix two pesticides together if the label doesn’t specify they can be mixed?
Answer: Yes your responsibility to make sure they retain their properties.
Q: 13. How can you tell two pesticides are not compatible?
Answer: The mixture may curdle gel or become sludge like.
Q: 14. How long is certification valid in Illinois before an applicator/operator must retest?
Answer: Each exam is valid for a period of up to 3 years as long as annual renewal forms are submitted.
Q: 15. The pre-harvest interval is the?
Answer: Amount of time that a crop can be harvested after it has been sprayed.
Q: 16. Which of the following is on every label?
Answer: Keep out of Reach of Children.
Q: 17. Who can purchase Restricted Use Pesticides?
Answer: Certified Applicators or persons under their direct supervision.
Q: 18. What part of the label should you look under to find the minimum PPE you should wear?
Answer: Precautionary Statement.
Q: 19. How often should you read the pesticide label?
Answer: Every time you purchase the product- can be used up to the phase out date
Q: 20. The Office of Safety and Health Administration protects the nation’s workers throughdissemination of information….
Answer: “Worker Right-to-Know”
Q: 21. Which of the following dermal exposures is the most serious?
Answer: When a pesticide mixed with oil crosses the skin barrier and into the bloodstream the results can be fatal.
Q: 22. If you spill highly concentrated chemicals on your cloths how should you clean them?
Answer: Don’t, dispose of them properly.
Q: 23. When filling rinsing draining and cleaning your equipment preferably the area should have?
Answer: A wash pad wash rack or concrete apron with a well designed sump to catch contaminated water.
Q: 24. What is the best way to get rid of excess chemical?
Answer: Dilute excess and reapply to area but do not exceed label rates for area.
Q: 25. What is a major concern of drift?
Answer: Off target damage to vegetation and people.
Q: 26. Which of the following is important to consider when purchasing and applying a pesticide?
Answer: a) The label is a legal documentb) Before you buy and apply a pesticide read the labelc) A General Use pesticide is not given a classification on the label–d) All of the above
Q: 27. What is a major complaint to the Dept. of Agriculture about spraying?
Answer: Drift from farms etc…
Q: 28. If you were going to spray an area and there are bee colonies with-in two miles what shouldyou do?
Answer: Contact the bee keepers 48 hrs. in advance so the colonies can be moved.
Q: 29. When is the best time to spray if bees are in the area?
Answer: Dawn and dusk.
Q: 30. Must be used with special caution near bee hives since bees may carry them back to the hiveand poison the entire colony?
Answer: Microencapsulated herbicide
Q: 31. How would you determine if the pesticide you are using is prone to volatilization?
Answer: Check the label often indicates.
Q: 32. Who do you have to contact if you have a chemical spill?
Answer: Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) they in turn notify theappropriate agency for response available 24hrs.
Q: 33. Which of the following is an example of a surface-water advisory?
Answer: Allow a 66-foot buffer area between the application area and surface watersources like a stream.
Q: 34. Pesticide breakdown is much slower in groundwater why?
Answer: Low oxygen and light conditions.
Q: 35. Which of the following influences a pesticides leaching ability?
Answer: Soil texture and organic matter.
Q: 36. A highly soluble pesticide is….?
Answer: Poorly adsorbed and more likely to leach.
Q: 37. What type of nozzle sprays in a cone pattern with droplets throughout?
Answer: Solid-cone.
Q: 38. When raising the boom sprayer you….?
Answer: Reduce or eliminate the overlap and increase drift.
Q: 39. What are some factors that you should think about before spraying?
Answer: Wind temperature, droplet size…
Q: 40. When using a tree injection system you should?
Answer: Use low pressure and allow the tree to uptake chemical.
Q: 41. For treatment to be effective against perennial weeds?
Answer: Must use a translocated herbicide to control vegetative reproductive structure
Q: 42. What should you do if you spill chemical on your clothes?
Answer: Remove clothes wash area thoroughly with soapy water etc.
Q: 43. The PPE that you wear when applying pesticides should be laundered?
Answer: Wash as soon as possible do not let clothes sit around.
Q: 45. What pump would you use if you wanted low flow rates and psi of up to 1000?
Answer: Piston.
Q: 46. When laundering clothes that were worn while spraying…?
Answer: Launder daily (within eight hours) keep separate from other clothing and inform person washing clothes of pesticide use.
Q: 47. How do you proper clean your nozzles?
Answer: Move to an area where it is safe and use a nozzle brush to clean nozzles.
Q: 48. When tanking mixing concentrates or highly toxic sprays…?
Answer: Wear a face shield or tight fitting goggles with antifog lenses and indirectventing.
Q: 49. Which substance produces gas vapors fumes and requires special licensing to handle?
Answer: Fumigants
Q: 50. Who enforces the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)?
Answer: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
Q: 51. Who is responsible for enforcing the laws that regulate the use of pesticides for structuralpest control?
Answer: Illinois Department of Public Health.
Q: 52. An individual who applies pesticides for any purpose on property other than that ownedrented or leased by themselves or their employer is a …?
Answer: Commercial For Hire Pesticide Applicator.
Q: 53. To purchase a “restricted” use pesticide?
Answer: Must have a current valid pesticide license or certification # must be recorded onthe retail invoice.
Q: 54. Lawn Care Products Application and Notice Act require?
Answer: Placement of markers immediately after application to lawn is made.
Q: 55. Applicators of “restricted” use pesticides must keep records for two years of what?
Answer: Product used amount applied size of area treated crop commodity andlocation date and name of applicator.
Q: 56. What are the types of control methods?
Answer: Cultural mechanical biological chemical
Q: 57. What is the breakeven point at which the cost of pest control equals the revenue loss causedby a pest?
Answer: Economic injury level
Q: 58. What is incomplete development in insects or simple metamorphosis?
Answer: Egg nymph adult
Q: 59. What are the 4 life cycles?
Answer: Egg larva pupa and adult.
Q: 60. How many legs do mites have?
Answer: 4 pairs eight legs
Q: 61. What animals are not protected by law?
Answer: Starlings house sparrows and feral pigeons
Q: 62. What are these symptoms: soil compaction pesticide or fertilizer excess temperature andmoist extremes?
Answer: Noninfectious disease
Q: 63. What is a yellowish-green coloration in normally green tissues such as leaves?
Answer: Chlorosis (see p.10)
Q: 64. What is abnormal swelling in a portion of a branch leaf root or bud?
Answer: Gall (see p. 10)
Q: 65. What is intermingling patches of green and yellow on a leaf?
Answer: Mosaic (see p. 10)
Q: 66. What does a biennial weed do?
Answer: Seed the second summer and die in the winter (see p. 12)
Q: 67. What type of herbicide is best for perennial weeds?
Answer: Systemic (translocated) herbicides (see p. 13)
Q: 68. What does A.I. Stand for ?
Answer: Active ingredient (see p. 15)
Q: 69. What order do you put these in a tank to mix them properly Soluble powders (SP) Wettablepowders (WP) and Flowable (F)?
Answer: Fill tank 1/4 to 1/2 full with carrier.Begin agitation.Add utility agents if needed (buffers)Add Dry pesticides: Wettable Powder (WP )Add Wet pesticides: Flowable (F)Add Solution forming pesticides: Soluble (SP)Add Spray modifiersFinish filling tank with carrier(ie. from hardest to dissolve to easiest)
Q: 70. What happens with Wetable Powders (WP)?
Answer: They wear out pumps and nozzles (see p. 16)
Q: 71. What are necessary for the development of an infectious plant disease?
Answer: Susceptible host Plant Pathogen Favorable Environment and Time
Q: 72. What type of weed germinates in the spring develops a root system and low growing clusterof leaves called a rosette?
Answer: A Biennial weed
Q: 73. Which of the following is not a type of pesticide?
Answer: a) wettable powderb) microencapsulated–c) surfactantd) soluble powder
Q: 74. Pesticide failure can be caused by which of the following?
Answer: a) pest resistanceb) inappropriate rate of pesticide usedc) environmental factors unfavorable for pesticide activity–d) all of the above
Q: 75. A biennial weed is?
Answer: a) Grows and sets seed every other year staying dormant underground on alternate yearsb) Flowers and set seeds twice per yearc) Grows vegetatively for two years and flowers and set seed on the third year–d) Grows vegetatively for one year and flowers and set seeds during the second year
Q: 76. What type of treatment is most effective against perennial weeds?
Answer: A Systemic (translocated) herbicide to control vegetative reproductive parts
Q: 77. What does LD 50 stand for?
Answer: Dose that kills half of the test animals (stands for lethal dose (LD) for 50%)
Q: 78. How do you prevent back-siphoning of pesticide back into the water supply?
Answer: Keeping an air gap or using anti-siphoning devices on garden hoses
Q: 79. How should you transport herbicide?
Answer: Checks to make sure all containers are not leaking. Do not transport with: Foodanimal feed or animal supplies. Tie down and secure containers
Q: 80. How should you store herbicide?
Answer: Store downwind and downhill from houses play areas and pondsStore away from human and livestock areas to avoid contamination in case of fireSigns posted with a locked door
Q: 81. What type of exposure occurs if chemical blows onto an operator’s chest?
Answer: Dermal exposure
Q: 82. If you spill highly concentrated toxic chemicals on your clothing how should you cleanthem?
Answer: Do not clean them… dispose of them immediately and change into clean clothes
Q: 83. What is the most serious dermal exposure?
Answer: When a pesticide mixed with oil crosses the skin barrier and into the bloodstreamthe results can be fatal.
Q: 84. What are the factors affecting pesticides making its way into the groundwater?
Answer: Pesticide properties ( adsoprtion and solubility) Soil properties (soil texture andorganic matter) Site conditions (depth of groundwater slope & climate)Management practices (mishandling not following directions)Example- Leaching occurs more on sandy soil or runoff on sloped areas
Q: 85. When should you not spray to prevent drift?
Answer: When winds are over 10 mph wind is blowing towards sensitive areas winds areshifting and during periods of calm/inversion.
Q: 86. Which of these conditions is most likely to result in runoff?
Answer: a) Sloping areasb) Areas with little ground coverc) Intense rainfall–d) All of the above
Q: 87. How do you determine if the pesticide you are using is prone to volatilization?
Answer: Check the label it often indicates.
Q: 88. What are two ways for pesticides to move downwind to non-target areas?
Answer: –a) By vapor drift and particle driftb) By runoff or soil erosionc) By microbial degradation and photodegradationd) By leaching through the soil profile into underground rivers
Q: 89. What is the major concern of drift?
Answer: Off target damage to vegetation and people
Q: 90. What is the major complaint the Department of Agriculture receives about spraying?
Answer: Spray drift from farms
Q: 91. Who do you have to contact if you have a chemical spill?
Answer: Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) (available 24 hours). They willnotify the appropriate agency OR Contact the emergency number on the label(available 24 hours)
Q: 92. What does FIFRA stand for and what agency is the lead administrative agency?
Answer: The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act administered by the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) that regulates pesticide use andregistration
Q: 93. What federal agency regulated the registration of pesticides and the proper certification ofpesticide applicators in the US?
Answer: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
Q: 94. What act regulates the registration storage handling and distribution of pesticides in thestate of Illinois?
Answer: Illinois Pesticide Act
Q: 95. What law is administered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)that requires that employees be informed of the pesticides and other hazardous chemicals in theworkplace?
Answer: Worker-Right-to-Know Law
Q: 96. What agency administers the Structural Pest Control Act which regulates wood treatment andother pests inside houses or other structures in Illinois?
Answer: Illinois Department of Public Health
Q: 97. What agency serves as the state lead agency for administration of the Illinois Pesticide Act?
Answer: Illinois Department of Agriculture
Q: 98. How many years must records of restricted pesticide applications be maintained?
Answer: 2 years
Q: 99. Which of the following is important to consider when purchasing and applying a pesticide?
Answer: a) The label is a legal documentb) Before you buy and apply a pesticide read the labelc) A General Use pesticide is not given a classification on the label–d) All of the above
Q: 100. When is the greatest potential for spray drift?
Answer: When wind velocity is greater than 10 miles an hour or when the wind is blowingtoward sensitive plants or critical areas.
Q: 101. When should you not apply low volume sprays (those having smaller droplet size)?
Answer: During periods of high temperature or low humidity. (since droplets evaporate easier)