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These 10 free LA-PEST questions are organized by exam domain, so you can see how each part of the Louisiana Commercial Pesticide Applicator General Standards Exam blueprint is tested. Reveal the answer and explanation under each question.
An applicator is planning another treatment on the same acreage. The label permits 1.0-2.0 pints per acre per application, requires at least 14 days between applications, and limits the total to 6.0 pints per acre per season. Records show 4.5 pints per acre already applied, with the last treatment 21 days ago. What is the largest additional rate permitted by these limits?
Correct answer: B - 1.5 pints per acre
A correctly identified pest is not named on a pesticide label, but the exact treatment site is listed. The label does not limit use to named pests, no applicable state restriction prohibits the use, and all other directions can be met. Under FIFRA's unlisted-pest provision, the missing pest name means that:
Correct answer: D - The pest's omission alone does not prohibit treating it at the labeled site.
Comparable laboratory studies report these LD50 values: Product X-oral 80 mg/kg, dermal 1,400 mg/kg; Product Y-oral 400 mg/kg, dermal 300 mg/kg. Both products are being considered for a job where skin contact is the main exposure concern. Which reading of the results is justified?
Correct answer: A - Product Y is more acutely toxic through the skin; these LD50 values alone do not establish the overall risk of the job.
Concentrated pesticide splashes into a mixer's eyes. The mixer wears contact lenses; a working eyewash is beside the mixing station, and a coworker is calling Poison Control with the product label. Which sequence follows standard pesticide-label first-aid directions for eye exposure?
Correct answer: B - Begin rinsing immediately; after 5 minutes remove contacts, then continue rinsing for 15-20 minutes total.
Before a dawn application, air temperature is 67°F near the ground and 74°F several feet higher. Smoke from a distant source hangs in a thin layer and moves sideways. The wind reading is within the product's allowed range, but its label prohibits application during a temperature inversion. How should these observations affect the application?
Correct answer: A - Delay spraying until the inversion has dispersed.
Within a day of a concentrated fertilizer spill, a narrow downslope strip of turf and several unrelated shrub species develops scorched foliage. The same plants outside that drainage path remain healthy. Inspection finds no feeding injury or evidence of a spreading infection. Which diagnosis best accounts for this pattern?
Correct answer: C - Abiotic salt injury associated with the fertilizer spill
Particles from a correctly mixed water-dispersible granule settle in the spray tank during a short stop. The label permits holding the mixture for this long. To resume spraying, the applicator should:
Correct answer: D - Thoroughly resuspend the particles, then maintain the label-required agitation while spraying.
A pest population is confirmed resistant to the mode-of-action group used in the current spray program. The operator has been alternating two brands, but both belong to that group. Correct pest identification, labeled rates, and adequate coverage have been verified. Which change directly addresses the resistance problem?
Correct answer: C - Combine an effective pesticide from a different group with nonchemical controls.
Without automatic rate control, a boom sprayer delivers 20 gallons of finished spray per acre at 5 mph. The tank mixture is proportioned to deliver 2.0 pints of product per acre at that setting, which is the label's maximum single-application rate. The operator slows to 4 mph without changing nozzle flow or swath width. What will be delivered now?
Correct answer: A - 25 gallons of spray and 2.5 pints of product per acre; the product limit is exceeded.
During an audit of a Louisiana business that applies pesticides for a fee to agricultural fields, the owner explains that complete application records are first prepared five days after each job and then kept for four years at the licensed business address. How does this practice compare with Louisiana's application-record requirements?
Correct answer: C - The retention period is sufficient, but the records are prepared too late.
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