OR Landscape Contractor study guide
OR Landscape Contractor · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Oregon requires anyone who installs, maintains, repairs, or contracts to perform landscape work for pay to operate under a license issued by the Oregon Landscape Contractors Board (LCB). The standardized licensing exam is the knowledge gate in that process. The OR Landscape Contractor study guide has 10 sections and about 3,098 words.
01Oregon Landscape Contracting Law, ORS Chapter 671, and LCB Rules
ORS 671.520 defines landscape contracting broadly: preparing property for landscaping, installing, planting or placing landscape materials, and maintaining an installed landscape. The definition reaches lawns, planting beds, irrigation systems, and the hardscape features that are part of the landscape.
336 words, about 2 min02Plant Selection, Identification, and Installation
Analyze light, soil texture and drainage, exposure, irrigation availability, and the space the plant will occupy at maturity. Oregon spans hardiness zones from roughly 5 in the high desert to 9 on the coast, and western Oregon's wet winters and dry summers favor plants adapted to that cycle.
328 words, about 2 min03Irrigation Design, Installation, and Water Management
Begin with the water source: meter size, static pressure, dynamic (working) pressure, and available flow in gallons per minute. Design zones as hydrozones with similar plant type, sun exposure, and root depth.
306 words, about 2 min04Business Operations and Financial Management
Choose and register an entity, obtain the LCB business license, and maintain the bond, general liability, and workers' compensation coverage. Oregon requires workers' compensation for employees, and public works projects trigger BOLI prevailing wage and certified payroll obligations.
300 words, about 2 min05Estimating, Bidding, and Contract Documentation
Start with a quantity takeoff from the plans and site measurements, then extend quantities by unit costs for material, labor, equipment, and subcontractors. Labor is priced by production rate (units per crew hour) multiplied by the fully burdened crew rate.
297 words, about 1 min06Soil, Grading, and Drainage
Know texture (sand, silt, clay) and how it drives pore space, infiltration, and water holding capacity. Structure, bulk density, and compaction determine root growth; construction traffic can raise bulk density enough to stop roots and pond water.
315 words, about 2 min07Landscape Construction and Hardscape Installation
Set grades and string lines from benchmarks before digging. Excavate to the designed depth, proof-roll and compact the subgrade, and remove soft spots.
304 words, about 2 min08Turf and Ornamental Maintenance Practices
Oregon lawns are predominantly cool-season grasses: tall fescue, perennial ryegrass, and Kentucky bluegrass. Follow the one-third rule, removing no more than one third of the blade height per mowing, and keep blades sharp.
295 words, about 1 min09Integrated Pest Management and Pesticide Safety
Identify the pest or pathogen positively before acting, monitor with scouting and sticky traps, and set an action threshold based on damage, not on the mere presence of an insect. Use cultural controls first (right plant, right place, sanitation, proper irrigation, resistant cultivars), then biological controls, then targeted chemicals only when the threshold is crossed.
290 words, about 1 min10Job Site Safety and Worker Protection
Oregon OSHA enforces workplace safety, and landscape crews face the same focus hazards as general construction: falls, struck-by, caught-in, and electrical. Require task-specific PPE, maintain hazard communication with accessible safety data sheets, and train workers in the language they understand before they perform the task.
327 words, about 2 min