FL Landscape study plan

List the Florida statutes and rules that govern landscape contracting, including chapter 482 pesticide licensing, chapter 373 water management, and local business tax and licensing requirements, and state which agency enforces each.

Distinguish the elements of a valid Florida landscape contract, including scope, price, payment schedule, change-order procedure, warranty, and notice of cancellation, and draft each clause in your own words.

Explain lien rights and notice requirements under Florida construction lien law as they apply to a landscape subcontractor or supplier, and describe the timeline for a notice to owner.

Compare the main business structures (sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation) on liability, taxation, and licensing implications for a small landscape firm.

Outline a client intake and proposal workflow that produces a written scope, site notes, and a signed contract before work begins.

Calculate a bid for a defined maintenance job by building a labor-hour estimate, adding equipment, disposal, and material costs, then applying overhead and target profit margin.

Read a simple planting and irrigation plan: identify scale, north arrow, legend, symbols, spot elevations, and utility notes, and convert scaled distances to field measurements.

Produce a quantity takeoff from a written plant and material schedule, including waste and spacing factors for groundcover and sod.

Differentiate direct cost, overhead, contingency, and markup, and show how a change in crew productivity shifts the break-even price.

Draft a bid package with assumptions, exclusions, and a validity period that limits your exposure to price changes.

Identify 40 common Florida landscape trees, shrubs, palms, and groundcovers from written leaf, stem, flower, fruit, and growth-habit descriptions, and record each plant's mature size and light and water needs.

Classify plants by Florida cold-hardiness zone and by salt, wind, drought, and flood tolerance, and match each to an appropriate site condition.

Explain correct installation procedure for container, balled-and-burlapped, and palm material, including root-flare depth, hole width, backfill, staking, and initial watering.

Apply Florida-Friendly right-plant-right-place and invasive-species avoidance criteria when selecting a plant palette for a stated site.

Diagnose common transplant failures such as planting too deep, burying the root flare, and over-staking, and state the corrective action for each.

Explain the components and operating logic of a Florida irrigation system: meter or pump, backflow prevention, valves, zones, lateral lines, heads, and controller, and describe what each does.

Compare spray, rotor, drip, and micro-spray emission devices on application rate, efficiency, and best use, and compute precipitation rate and run time for a given zone.

Apply Florida water-management rules in principle: watering-day restrictions, the 60-day establishment exemption concept, rain shutoff device requirements, and soil-moisture or smart-controller scheduling.

Perform a zone-by-zone audit procedure (catch-can test, pressure check, head-to-head coverage, matched precipitation) and interpret the results.

Diagnose overwatering and underwatering symptoms in turf and ornamentals and link each to a scheduling or hardware cause.

Describe Florida soil orders and characteristics common to the state, including sandy entisols, low cation exchange capacity, rapid leaching, and high water tables, and explain the management consequence of each.

Interpret a soil test report: read pH, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and micronutrient levels and convert recommendations into a fertilizer program.

Apply Florida fertilizer rules in principle, including slow-release nitrogen content, blackout-window and rainy-season restrictions, fertilizer-free zones near water, and prohibited application to impervious surfaces.

Calculate fertilizer application rates to deliver a target pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet using product analysis, and explain the difference between quick-release and controlled-release products.

Diagnose nutrient deficiency and toxicity symptoms in palms and turf, including magnesium, potassium, manganese, and iron, and distinguish them from disease and water stress.

Explain the integrated pest management hierarchy (cultural, biological, mechanical, chemical) and write a scouting and action-threshold procedure for a maintenance route.

Identify major Florida landscape pests from written damage descriptions, including chinch bugs, mole crickets, whiteflies, scales, aphids, thrips, mites, and palm weevils.

Identify major Florida diseases from written symptom descriptions, including large patch, take-all root rot, gray leaf spot, and lethal bronzing, and separate them from abiotic disorders.

Read a pesticide label for signal word, restricted-entry interval, personal protective equipment, target pest, rate, and resistance-management guidance, and state the legal obligation for each.

Apply Florida pesticide licensing and recordkeeping requirements in principle, including applicator categories, posting and notification, and record retention.

Explain proper pruning cuts and timing for Florida trees, shrubs, palms, and hedges, including the three-cut method, reduction versus heading cuts, and why palm frond removal is limited to dead or dying material.

Describe ANSI A300 pruning practice in principle and the difference between structural, maintenance, and clearance pruning, and list the hazards of topping and lion-tailing.

Explain grading and drainage fundamentals: slope percentages, swales, catch points, positive drainage away from structures, and the role of French drains and dry wells.

Describe hardscape installation basics for paver, concrete, and segmental retaining wall work, including base preparation, compaction, edge restraint, and wall batter and drainage.

Outline a seasonal Florida maintenance calendar covering mowing height, irrigation adjustment, fertilization windows, mulch refresh, and storm-season preparation.

Apply the nine Florida-Friendly Landscaping principles to a described property and identify which practices reduce irrigation demand, nutrient runoff, and stormwater pollution.

Explain the role of mulch, compost, native and non-invasive plant selection, and wildlife habitat in a Florida-Friendly design, and specify appropriate mulch depth and setbacks from structures.

Identify OSHA and Florida safety obligations for landscape crews, including hazard communication, personal protective equipment, heat-illness prevention, and safe operation of mowers, trimmers, and chainsaws.

Describe safe transport and loading practice for trailers and equipment, and the inspection and maintenance checks required before operating powered equipment.

Explain the environmental rules for yard-waste handling, fertilizer and pesticide spill response, and protection of water bodies and wetlands during site work.