NY Pesticide Applicator flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Signal word DANGER

DANGER appears on labels of highly toxic pesticides and must be accompanied by the word POISON and a skull-and-crossbones symbol when the product is highly toxic by any route.

Restricted entry interval

The REI is the minimum time after a pesticide application during which workers may not enter the treated area without required protective equipment, as stated on the label.

Triple rinsing containers

Empty pesticide containers are drained, filled one-third with water, shaken, and emptied into the spray tank three times, then punctured or crushed before disposal.

LD50

LD50 is the dose of a pesticide, usually in milligrams per kilogram of body weight, that kills half of a test animal population; lower values indicate greater acute toxicity.

Preharvest interval

The PHI is the minimum number of days between the last pesticide application and harvest of the crop, set to keep residues below the established tolerance.

Economic threshold

The pest population density at which control measures are justified because the value of crop loss expected would exceed the cost of the treatment.

Mode-of-action rotation

Resistance is delayed by alternating pesticides from different mode-of-action groups, identified by IRAC, HRAC, or FRAC group numbers on the product label.

Hack and squirt

A cut-surface method where overlapping axe cuts are made around the trunk and herbicide is squirted into the exposed cambium, used for hardwood control and site preparation.

Basal bark treatment

Herbicide mixed with oil is applied to the lower 12 to 18 inches of a woody stem, penetrating thin bark; used on saplings and small-diameter trees.

Streamside management zone

A vegetated buffer left along streams during forest herbicide operations that filters runoff, shades water, and prevents direct spray or drift into surface water.

Phytotoxicity

Injury to desirable plants from a pesticide, shown as leaf burn, distortion, stunting, or discoloration; risk rises with high temperatures, wrong rate, or tank mixes.

Granular spreader calibration

The process of measuring the actual amount of granular product delivered over a known area and adjusting the spreader setting to match the label rate.

Neighbor notification for lawns

New York requires commercial lawn applicators to give adjacent property owners written notice at least 48 hours before a pesticide application on residential turf, unless exempt.

Aquatic permit requirement

In New York, applying a pesticide to surface waters generally requires a DEC aquatic pesticide permit in addition to a certified applicator and an aquatic-labeled product.

Dissolved oxygen crash

Treating too much algae at once causes rapid decomposition that consumes oxygen and can kill fish, so large areas are treated in sections with spacing between applications.

Subsurface injection

A method that releases herbicide below the water surface to reduce drift and volatilization and to place the active ingredient in the target depth zone.

Low-volatile ester

An ester herbicide formulation with reduced tendency to vaporize after application, chosen for right-of-way work near sensitive crops to limit vapor drift.

Total vegetation control

A program using soil-residual and contact herbicides to keep an area bare of all vegetation, common on industrial yards, substations, and railroad beds.

Picloram groundwater risk

Picloram is a persistent auxin herbicide that can leach into groundwater on sandy or high-pH soils, so labels restrict use in recharge areas.

Crack and crevice application

A precise placement of pesticide into gaps less than a quarter inch wide where pests harbor, used indoors to limit human and pet exposure.

Tamper-resistant bait station

A locked or secured housing that holds rodenticide and prevents children, pets, and non-target animals from reaching the bait, required in many situations.

Exclusion

A structural IPM practice that seals cracks, screens vents, and repairs doors so pests cannot enter, reducing the need for pesticide applications.

Food-contact surface rule

Pesticides may not be applied to surfaces where food is processed or handled unless the label permits it, and surfaces must be cleaned before food operations resume.

Stored product pest control

Control of insects such as Indian meal moth and flour beetles in warehouses uses sanitation, pheromone monitoring, fumigation, and only labeled space or crack treatments.

HACCP

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point is a food safety system identifying biological, chemical, and physical hazards, including pesticide residues, and the controls that prevent them.

Experimental use permit

An EUP from EPA, and in New York a DEC approval, allows limited testing of an unregistered pesticide or new use on specified acreage under reporting conditions.

Recertification credits

New York certified applicators renew by earning continuing education credits in approved categories during each certification period instead of retaking the full examination.

6 NYCRR Part 325

The New York regulation that governs pesticide registration, sale, use, application, recordkeeping, and reporting under the state Environmental Conservation Law.

Untreated check plot

A replicated plot receiving no pesticide that provides the baseline for measuring treatment effect and detecting phytotoxicity or yield differences in a trial.

Randomized complete block

A field trial design where each treatment appears once per block and blocks are placed to account for field variation, improving the precision of comparisons.

Part 137 certification

FAA rules require commercial aerial applicators to hold an operating certificate, and pilots must meet experience and knowledge requirements beyond a private pilot license.

Temperature inversion

A layer where air temperature increases with height, trapping fine spray droplets near the ground and causing severe off-target drift; applications are avoided.