TEXAS ORNAMENTAL AND TURF STUDY GUIDE 2025/2026
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS GRADED A+
✔✔internal feeders - ✔✔(mine or bore) feed internally on plant parts including stems
leaves seeds and fruit. primary larvae of beetles, moths and flies. bark beetle, apple
maggot, leafminer
✔✔subterranean feeders - ✔✔insects feeding below ground on roots of plants. difficult
to detect as well as notice their damage. beetle grubs such as white grub sod webworm
✔✔honeydew - ✔✔piercing sucking pests such as aphids excrete a sugary material that
drips onto plant parts. it also provides an environment for black sooty mold
✔✔Mode of Action MOA - ✔✔how an insecticide gets into the body of an insect to affect
its nervous or respiratory system
✔✔contact toxins - ✔✔some enter the insects digestive tract when the insect cleans
itself or feeds and acts as a stomach poison. need to know how the pesticide works,
either cover the insect or the plant and ensure a lethal does was given.
✔✔systemic insecticides - ✔✔are absorbed by plant roots or foliage and than
translocated throughout the plants. best against piercing sucking insects
✔✔Selective or Narrow spectrum - ✔✔insecticides that a very specific and kill only a
few often related insects without harming the beneficial
✔✔broad spectrum - ✔✔effective against several kinds of insects
✔✔residual - ✔✔products that do remain active in the environment for long period of
time-days weeks- month
✔✔nonresidual - ✔✔short term products that do not remain active in the environment
✔✔inorganic insecticides - ✔✔compounds that do not contain carbon. They include salt,
copper sulfate, sulfuric acid and sodium chlorate. extremely persistent and cause
serious soil pollution problems. Many are restricted-use pesticides.
✔✔Botanical Organic insecticide - ✔✔derived from or extracted from plants. like
nicotine pyrethrums. generally nonresistant
✔✔synthetic organic insecticides - ✔✔manufactured or derived compounds. extremely
effective easy to use. dangerous when used improperly
, ✔✔pyrethroids - ✔✔synthetic chemicals related to botanical pyrethrums. very effective
in low doses and low toxicity to mammals.
✔✔chlorinated hydrocarbons - ✔✔DDT. long persistence in the environment, bio-
accumulation. not many registered today
✔✔Organophosphates OPs - ✔✔short residual life, do not bio-accumulate in non
targets. toxic to humans, cause the most human illness.
✔✔Carbamates - ✔✔broad-spectrum. vary in human toxicity and persistence in the
environment. toxicity to pollinators and beneficial.
✔✔spray oils - ✔✔oils suffocate the target. highly phytotoxic if not refined
✔✔microbial insecticides - ✔✔formulated with bacteria, viruses or fungi as AI. cause
disease and eventually death to insect that came in contact. Bt. usually harmless to non
target.
✔✔Insect growth regulators IGR - ✔✔may interfere with larva's juvenile hormone,
keeping them from maturing. work best when only the adult stage does the damage or
when low numbers are tolerable. degrade quickly in sunlight
✔✔insect pheromones - ✔✔chemical messengers that elicit a response. (mating) used
for sampling, pest detection, attracting and killing pests and disrupting behaviors
✔✔Abiotic causes - ✔✔nonliving cause of plant disease -physical or chemical
component harmful to plant health. temp, soil moisture, light, pesticides, deficiencies,
weather
✔✔biotic causes - ✔✔pathogen or caused by living organisms
✔✔disease development (triangle) - ✔✔Presence of parasite organisms, Available
susceptible hosts, Favorable environmental conditions for development. only when
these three conditions are meet will a disease occur
✔✔Diagnosing diseases - ✔✔determine if abiotic or biotic by characteristic signs and
symptoms is essential to identify causal agent. note distribution pattern, disease
development timeline.
✔✔pollinator protection - ✔✔avoid unnecessary insecticide use, avoid insecticide
formulations most similar to pollen (dust), avoid applications when bees are most active
✔✔Fungi - ✔✔largest group of pathogens, cause leaf/stem spots, rust, smut root rots.
reproduce through large amounts of spores. many are beneficial decomposers
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS GRADED A+
✔✔internal feeders - ✔✔(mine or bore) feed internally on plant parts including stems
leaves seeds and fruit. primary larvae of beetles, moths and flies. bark beetle, apple
maggot, leafminer
✔✔subterranean feeders - ✔✔insects feeding below ground on roots of plants. difficult
to detect as well as notice their damage. beetle grubs such as white grub sod webworm
✔✔honeydew - ✔✔piercing sucking pests such as aphids excrete a sugary material that
drips onto plant parts. it also provides an environment for black sooty mold
✔✔Mode of Action MOA - ✔✔how an insecticide gets into the body of an insect to affect
its nervous or respiratory system
✔✔contact toxins - ✔✔some enter the insects digestive tract when the insect cleans
itself or feeds and acts as a stomach poison. need to know how the pesticide works,
either cover the insect or the plant and ensure a lethal does was given.
✔✔systemic insecticides - ✔✔are absorbed by plant roots or foliage and than
translocated throughout the plants. best against piercing sucking insects
✔✔Selective or Narrow spectrum - ✔✔insecticides that a very specific and kill only a
few often related insects without harming the beneficial
✔✔broad spectrum - ✔✔effective against several kinds of insects
✔✔residual - ✔✔products that do remain active in the environment for long period of
time-days weeks- month
✔✔nonresidual - ✔✔short term products that do not remain active in the environment
✔✔inorganic insecticides - ✔✔compounds that do not contain carbon. They include salt,
copper sulfate, sulfuric acid and sodium chlorate. extremely persistent and cause
serious soil pollution problems. Many are restricted-use pesticides.
✔✔Botanical Organic insecticide - ✔✔derived from or extracted from plants. like
nicotine pyrethrums. generally nonresistant
✔✔synthetic organic insecticides - ✔✔manufactured or derived compounds. extremely
effective easy to use. dangerous when used improperly
, ✔✔pyrethroids - ✔✔synthetic chemicals related to botanical pyrethrums. very effective
in low doses and low toxicity to mammals.
✔✔chlorinated hydrocarbons - ✔✔DDT. long persistence in the environment, bio-
accumulation. not many registered today
✔✔Organophosphates OPs - ✔✔short residual life, do not bio-accumulate in non
targets. toxic to humans, cause the most human illness.
✔✔Carbamates - ✔✔broad-spectrum. vary in human toxicity and persistence in the
environment. toxicity to pollinators and beneficial.
✔✔spray oils - ✔✔oils suffocate the target. highly phytotoxic if not refined
✔✔microbial insecticides - ✔✔formulated with bacteria, viruses or fungi as AI. cause
disease and eventually death to insect that came in contact. Bt. usually harmless to non
target.
✔✔Insect growth regulators IGR - ✔✔may interfere with larva's juvenile hormone,
keeping them from maturing. work best when only the adult stage does the damage or
when low numbers are tolerable. degrade quickly in sunlight
✔✔insect pheromones - ✔✔chemical messengers that elicit a response. (mating) used
for sampling, pest detection, attracting and killing pests and disrupting behaviors
✔✔Abiotic causes - ✔✔nonliving cause of plant disease -physical or chemical
component harmful to plant health. temp, soil moisture, light, pesticides, deficiencies,
weather
✔✔biotic causes - ✔✔pathogen or caused by living organisms
✔✔disease development (triangle) - ✔✔Presence of parasite organisms, Available
susceptible hosts, Favorable environmental conditions for development. only when
these three conditions are meet will a disease occur
✔✔Diagnosing diseases - ✔✔determine if abiotic or biotic by characteristic signs and
symptoms is essential to identify causal agent. note distribution pattern, disease
development timeline.
✔✔pollinator protection - ✔✔avoid unnecessary insecticide use, avoid insecticide
formulations most similar to pollen (dust), avoid applications when bees are most active
✔✔Fungi - ✔✔largest group of pathogens, cause leaf/stem spots, rust, smut root rots.
reproduce through large amounts of spores. many are beneficial decomposers
