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Plant health practice questions

24 questions from the certified arborist practice test.

Plant health practice test

10 questions, graded as you go, with the reason for every answer. No sign-up.

What this covers

Sample questions

Which of these is a sign rather than a symptom?

  1. Dieback of branch tips
  2. Wilting of the leaves
  3. A fungal conk on the trunk
  4. Yellowing between veins
Show the answer

C. A fungal conk on the trunk

A sign is physical evidence of the causal agent itself, such as a fruiting body, insect, frass or ooze. Wilting, chlorosis and dieback are symptoms: the plant's response.

Reference: Arborist certification study guide: Diagnosis and Plant Disorders (signs and symptoms)

Several unrelated species along one side of a street show the same leaf browning, all appearing at the same time. What does this pattern suggest?

  1. An abiotic cause such as chemical or environmental injury
  2. A host-specific fungal leaf disease spreading by spores
  3. A vascular wilt disease spreading through root grafts
  4. A boring insect that attacks one genus of trees
Show the answer

A. An abiotic cause such as chemical or environmental injury

Uniform damage across many unrelated species that appears at once points to a non-living cause. Biotic problems are usually host-specific, appear unevenly and progress over time.

Reference: Arborist certification study guide: Diagnosis and Plant Disorders (patterns)

The disease triangle says disease develops only when three things occur together. What are they?

  1. A host, a pathogen and a favourable environment
  2. A pathogen, a vector and a period of drought stress
  3. A pathogen, a wound and a nutrient-deficient soil
  4. A susceptible host, a vector and a wound in the bark
Show the answer

A. A host, a pathogen and a favourable environment

Disease needs a susceptible host, a virulent pathogen and suitable environmental conditions at the same time. Changing any one side, such as planting resistant cultivars or improving air movement, reduces disease.

Reference: Arborist certification study guide: Diagnosis and Plant Disorders (disease triangle)

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