Which branch of horticulture focuses primarily on fruit crops?
A Olericulture
B Pomology
C Floriculture
D Landscape architecture
Answer: B. Pomology. Pomology is the branch of horticulture concerned with fruit crops and their production.
Vegetable crop production is studied under which branch?
A Pomology
B Floriculture
C Arboriculture
D Olericulture
Answer: D. Olericulture. Olericulture focuses on the cultivation and production of vegetable crops.
Floriculture mainly deals with which products?
A Grain and pulse crops
B Flowers and ornamental plants
C Fruit tree rootstocks
D Forest timber species
Answer: B. Flowers and ornamental plants. Floriculture covers the cultivation and handling of flowers and ornamental plants.
Sexual propagation most commonly begins with which plant material?
A Seeds
B Detached stem pieces
C Grafted buds
D Rooted runners
Answer: A. Seeds. Sexual propagation uses seeds formed after reproduction; offspring may show genetic variation.
Why do seed-grown plants sometimes differ from their parent cultivar?
A Genetic variation from reproduction
B Every seed is a clone
C Roots change the seed
D Pruning alters inherited genes
Answer: A. Genetic variation from reproduction. Sexual reproduction recombines genetic material, so seedlings may not remain true to the parent cultivar.
What is a main advantage of vegetative propagation for selected cultivars?
A Create new seed variation
B Produce genetically similar plants
C Guarantee disease-free stock
D Eliminate nursery care
Answer: B. Produce genetically similar plants. Vegetative propagation reproduces selected plant material and can preserve cultivar traits, although it may also transmit diseases.
In grafting, what does the scion provide?
A Desired shoot or cultivar
B Only the root system
C The nursery container
D The growing medium
Answer: A. Desired shoot or cultivar. The scion is the shoot portion selected for its desired cultivar or other traits.
Which graft component forms the root system?
A Scion
B Flower bud
C Leaf cutting
D Rootstock
Answer: D. Rootstock. The rootstock provides the rooted lower portion and may influence vigor, soil adaptation or other traits.
Grafting joins which two plant parts?
A Two loose seeds
B A leaf and flower
C Scion and rootstock
D Roots and growing media
Answer: C. Scion and rootstock. Grafting unites a scion with a compatible rooted stock so their tissues can grow together.
How does budding differ from many other grafting methods?
A Uses a single bud
B Uses only seeds
C Requires no living tissue
D Joins two root systems
Answer: A. Uses a single bud. Budding is a grafting method that uses a single bud as the scion material.
During layering, when are roots encouraged to form?
A After harvesting the fruit
B Inside a dry seed
C After removing all leaves
D Before separating the shoot
Answer: D. Before separating the shoot. Layering encourages roots on a stem while it remains attached to the parent plant; it is separated after rooting.
Cutting propagation begins after which action?
A Join two cultivars
B Soak a mature fruit
C Remove the rootstock
D Detach a plant portion
Answer: D. Detach a plant portion. Cuttings are detached plant parts that are induced to form roots and grow as new plants.
Micropropagation produces plants using which setting?
A Open-field seed broadcasting
B Sterile laboratory culture
C Uncovered orchard trenches
D Dry storage bins
Answer: B. Sterile laboratory culture. Micropropagation grows plant material in controlled, aseptic culture conditions from small explants.
Why are seedlings hardened before transplanting outdoors?
A Adapt gradually to field conditions
B Induce permanent dormancy
C Increase transplant shock
D Stop root growth completely
Answer: A. Adapt gradually to field conditions. Hardening gradually exposes nursery plants to outside conditions, helping reduce stress at transplanting.
What is the main purpose of a plant nursery?
A Store harvested grain
B Grade market produce
C Raise planting material
D Manufacture irrigation pumps
Answer: C. Raise planting material. Nurseries produce and care for seedlings, rooted cuttings, grafts and other planting material.
Scarification is used on some seeds to do what?
A Join scion to stock
B Remove fruit field heat
C Increase soil compaction
D Break a hard seed coat
Answer: D. Break a hard seed coat. Scarification weakens or opens a hard seed coat to improve water entry and germination in species with physical dormancy.
For seeds needing cold stratification, what treatment is applied?
A Dry heat for one hour
B Moist chilling for a period
C Direct sunlight after sowing
D Saltwater immersion
Answer: B. Moist chilling for a period. Cold stratification exposes suitable seeds to moist, cool conditions that can help overcome physiological dormancy.
How do training and pruning differ in plant management?
A Both mean seed treatment
B Training directs growth; pruning removes
C Pruning adds rootstock
D Training removes all flowers
Answer: B. Training directs growth; pruning removes. Training guides plant structure and branch position, while pruning selectively removes plant parts.
Which branches are common targets for corrective pruning?
A Dead, diseased, crossing branches
B Every healthy fruiting branch
C All new leaves
D All roots below ground
Answer: A. Dead, diseased, crossing branches. Removing dead, diseased or crossing branches can improve plant structure and reduce some sources of injury or infection.
Thinning a dense canopy can improve which conditions?
A Leaf-to-leaf contact
B Light and air movement
C Soil salinity
D Seed dormancy
Answer: B. Light and air movement. Appropriate canopy thinning can increase light penetration and airflow, though pruning needs vary by crop.
In a square orchard system, how are trees spaced?
A Unequal rows and columns
B Along one curved line
C Without measured intervals
D Equal spacing both directions
Answer: D. Equal spacing both directions. The square system places trees at equal distances within rows and between rows.
Pollination transfers pollen from which floral part?
A Anther to stigma
B Root to leaf
C Ovary to rootstock
D Fruit to seed coat
Answer: A. Anther to stigma. Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther to a receptive stigma.
Successful pollination and fertilization can support which outcome?
A Permanent leaf dormancy
B Rootstock separation
C Fruit and seed development
D Soil sterilization
Answer: C. Fruit and seed development. In many flowering crops, pollination followed by fertilization enables seed development and can contribute to fruit set.
Protected cultivation uses structures mainly to do what?
A Replace all crop care
B Prevent every pest
C Modify the crop environment
D Eliminate irrigation needs
Answer: C. Modify the crop environment. Structures such as greenhouses and net houses modify growing conditions and can offer protection, but they still require active management.
Shade nets are used to adjust which conditions?
A Seed genetics
B Incoming light and heat
C Rootstock compatibility
D Harvest maturity
Answer: B. Incoming light and heat. Shade nets reduce or modify incoming solar radiation, with the effect depending on the net and installation.
Greenhouse management commonly monitors which factors?
A Only market prices
B Only rootstock age
C Only fruit color
D Temperature, humidity, and light
Answer: D. Temperature, humidity, and light. Temperature, humidity and light are key greenhouse conditions affecting crop growth and production.
Drip irrigation delivers water most directly to which zone?
A Across the whole canopy
B Near the root zone
C Only to flower petals
D Above the greenhouse roof
Answer: B. Near the root zone. Drip systems apply water near plant roots through emitters, improving targeted water delivery.
Fertigation combines irrigation with which activity?
A Pruning young shoots
B Sorting harvested fruit
C Grafting nursery plants
D Applying dissolved nutrients
Answer: D. Applying dissolved nutrients. Fertigation applies soluble nutrients through an irrigation system, following crop and equipment guidance.
Hydroponic production grows plants without what?
A Water in every system
B Soil as the growing medium
C Nutrients for plant growth
D Support for plant roots
Answer: B. Soil as the growing medium. Hydroponic systems grow plants without soil, supplying water and nutrients through a managed solution or substrate system.
Mulch placed over soil can help achieve what?
A Increase evaporation and weeds
B Conserve moisture, suppress weeds
C Sterilize all crop roots
D Replace every nutrient
Answer: B. Conserve moisture, suppress weeds. Suitable mulches can reduce soil water loss and suppress weeds, with material and crop conditions affecting performance.
Vertical farming arranges crops in which way?
A Single field rows only
B Buried orchard tiers
C Stacked growing layers
D Random seed piles
Answer: C. Stacked growing layers. Vertical farming uses vertically stacked growing areas, often in controlled environments.
Why is harvest maturity important for horticultural produce?
A Determines plant genetics
B Stops all respiration
C Replaces safe handling
D Affects quality and shelf life
Answer: D. Affects quality and shelf life. Maturity at harvest influences eating quality, subsequent ripening and storability.
Physiological maturity differs from eating ripeness in what way?
A Both always occur simultaneously
B Development completes before eating quality
C Ripeness means seed dormancy
D Maturity is measured by package
Answer: B. Development completes before eating quality. A commodity can reach physiological maturity before it develops the eating characteristics associated with ripeness.
Climacteric fruits show which postharvest pattern?
A Ripening stops at harvest
B They never produce ethylene
C Respiration rises during ripening
D They require no handling
Answer: C. Respiration rises during ripening. Climacteric fruits generally show a rise in respiration associated with ripening and often respond to ethylene.
Which group generally lacks a pronounced climacteric rise?
A Climacteric fruits
B Rootstock seedlings
C Grafted nursery plants
D Non-climacteric fruits
Answer: D. Non-climacteric fruits. Non-climacteric fruits do not show the same pronounced respiratory rise characteristic of climacteric ripening.
Ethylene is important in horticulture because it can do what?
A Promote ripening in many fruits
B Replace water in tissues
C Stop all respiration
D Prevent every decay
Answer: A. Promote ripening in many fruits. Ethylene is a plant hormone that promotes ripening in many fruits and can also accelerate senescence in sensitive produce.
What is the purpose of pre-cooling freshly harvested produce?
A Increase field heat
B Sterilize every fruit
C Raise respiration rates
D Remove field heat rapidly
Answer: D. Remove field heat rapidly. Pre-cooling rapidly removes field heat, helping maintain quality and extend storage life when properly matched to the commodity.
Gentle harvesting and handling help prevent which problem?
A Genetic variation
B Rootstock incompatibility
C Bruising and physical injury
D Seed dormancy
Answer: C. Bruising and physical injury. Bruises, cuts and abrasions increase quality loss and may make produce more susceptible to decay.
Grading horticultural produce sorts items mainly by which criteria?
A Quality, size, and maturity
B Root depth and leaf count
C Farm location alone
D Irrigation source only
Answer: A. Quality, size, and maturity. Grading separates produce into classes using standards such as size, quality and maturity.
Suitable packaging protects fresh produce from what?
A Ripening under all conditions
B Every temperature change
C All physiological processes
D Damage and contamination
Answer: D. Damage and contamination. Appropriate packages protect produce from mechanical injury and contamination during handling and transport.
What does a cold chain aim to maintain?
A High temperature after harvest
B Uncontrolled storage humidity
C Suitable temperature through distribution
D Repeated warming cycles
Answer: C. Suitable temperature through distribution. A cold chain maintains product-appropriate temperature from postharvest handling through transport and distribution.
Why is relative humidity managed during produce storage?
A Increase water loss
B Promote surface injury
C Limit transpiration and shriveling
D Stop all respiration
Answer: C. Limit transpiration and shriveling. Managing suitable humidity helps limit water loss, while conditions must avoid condensation and suit the commodity.
Controlled-atmosphere storage adjusts which storage factors?
A Oxygen and carbon dioxide levels
B Fruit genetics and rootstock
C Harvest dates and orchard rows
D Package color and farm size
Answer: A. Oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. Controlled-atmosphere storage manages gases such as oxygen and carbon dioxide alongside temperature and humidity.
Respiration after harvest affects produce by doing what?
A Stops all ripening
B Creates new roots
C Uses substrates and releases heat
D Prevents water loss
Answer: C. Uses substrates and releases heat. Fresh produce remains alive after harvest; respiration uses stored substrates and contributes to deterioration.
Transpiration in harvested produce leads mainly to what?
A Water loss and wilting
B Seed formation
C Root growth
D Pollen transfer
Answer: A. Water loss and wilting. Transpiration is water loss from plant tissues and can cause weight loss, wilting and shriveling after harvest.
Which measurements can serve as crop-specific maturity indices?
A Farm name and field number
B Color, size, and firmness
C Package shape alone
D Worker age and shift
Answer: B. Color, size, and firmness. Maturity indices vary by commodity and can include color, size, firmness, soluble solids or other measures.
Why move harvested produce into shade promptly?
A Reduce sun heating and damage
B Increase field heat
C Delay cooling
D Promote surface dehydration
Answer: A. Reduce sun heating and damage. Shade limits direct sun exposure while produce awaits transport or cooling, helping reduce heat and quality loss.
Sorting out damaged or decayed produce can help with what?
A Increase bruising
B Raise respiration uniformly
C Protect lot quality
D Replace grading standards
Answer: C. Protect lot quality. Separating damaged or decayed items helps maintain quality and can reduce contamination or decay risks in a lot.
Why should clean water and sanitized surfaces be used during handling?
A Increase pesticide residues
B Raise field heat
C Reduce microbial contamination
D Delay maturity
Answer: C. Reduce microbial contamination. Clean water and hygienic surfaces reduce the risk of contaminating fresh produce during washing and packing.
Where should ethylene-sensitive produce be stored relative to strong ethylene producers?
A Keep away from ethylene producers
B Place beside ripening bananas
C Store with damaged fruit
D Keep in direct sunlight
Answer: A. Keep away from ethylene producers. Ethylene-sensitive commodities should be separated from high ethylene producers when storage conditions and commodity guidance call for it.