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NOCTI Horticulture Landscaping Practice Test

Unofficial practice for NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping: plant science, soils, pests, irrigation, propagation, design, installation, turf and tree care.

Which tissue of a stem carries water and minerals?

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Exam mode: 50 questions, 53 minutes.

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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with NOCTI. Bank checked October 16, 2026.

Next step More plant and soil science: Praxis AgricultureMore plant science: CSET Agriculture

All 50 questions

General Knowledge 14

  • A bag of fertilizer is labeled 16-4-8. What does the middle number give? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 1, Soils and Plant Nutrients. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • A client wants one large shade tree inspected and pruned. Which professional practices the cultivation, management and study of individual trees, shrubs and other woody plants? Wikipedia, Arborist. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • A crew will prune trees near an overhead power line rated under 50 kV. Which clearance does OSHA's landscaping page tell tree care crews to keep? OSHA, Landscape and Horticultural Services: Hazards and Solutions, Tree Care. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • A plan sets aside money for hardscape. Which of these is hardscape? Wikipedia, Hardscape. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • A plant grows only leaves and a storage root in its first season, flowers and sets seed in its second, and then dies. What kind of plant is it? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
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General Knowledge, continued

  • A plant has leaves with parallel major veins and flower parts in multiples of three. To which class of flowering plants does it belong? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany, Table 3-1. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • A soil test shows that a planting bed is too acidic for the shrubs chosen. Which material is applied to raise the soil pH? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 1, Soils and Plant Nutrients, Adjusting pH. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • If a grain of sand were as big as a basketball, a silt particle would be a marble. On that scale, which soil particle would be a pinpoint? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 1, Soils and Plant Nutrients, Texture. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • In plant naming, what is a cultivar? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • The sweet gum tree is Liquidambar styraciflua. In this two-part scientific name, what is the first word? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • What are the stomata of a leaf? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • Which nutrient is responsible for rapid foliage growth and green color, so that a shortage shows as light green to yellow older leaves? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 1, Soils and Plant Nutrients. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • Which part of a flower is the male reproductive organ, made up of an anther and a filament? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge
  • Which tissue of a stem carries water and minerals? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), General Knowledge

Pest and Disease Management 6

  • A nursery block has just been sprayed. What is the restricted-entry interval (REI) on the pesticide label? U.S. EPA, Restrictions to Protect Workers After Pesticide Applications. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Pest and Disease Management
  • An IPM program does not spray at the first sighting of a pest. What is the name for the pest level at which control action must be taken? U.S. EPA, Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Principles. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Pest and Disease Management
  • Black sooty mold covers the leaves of a shrub under attack by aphids. What is the mold growing on? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 4, Insects. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Pest and Disease Management
  • The disease triangle says a plant disease occurs only when three things are present together. Which three? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 5, Diseases and Disorders, Figure 5-67. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Pest and Disease Management
  • Three pesticide products on a shelf carry the signal words CAUTION, WARNING and DANGER. Which signal word marks the most toxic product? National Pesticide Information Center, Signal Words fact sheet. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Pest and Disease Management
  • When is a preemergence herbicide applied to an established planting bed? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 6, Weeds. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Pest and Disease Management

Fundamentals of Irrigation 3

  • An irrigation system is tied into the drinking water line of a building. Which device protects the potable supply from contamination? Wikipedia, Backflow prevention device. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Fundamentals of Irrigation
  • How does a drip irrigation system deliver water? Wikipedia, Drip irrigation. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Fundamentals of Irrigation
  • What is the preferred time of day to water a lawn? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9, Lawns. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Fundamentals of Irrigation

Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills 5

  • A grower roots stem cuttings taken from one stock plant. With few exceptions, how do the new plants compare with the parent? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 13, Propagation. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills
  • A seed has a hard coat that keeps out water and gases. What is the treatment of scratching or breaking the seed coat called? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 13, Propagation. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills
  • Bedding plants raised in a greenhouse are moved outside in stages before they are sold. What is this conditioning called? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 13, Propagation. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills
  • Which growing structure is a transparent-roofed enclosure built low to the ground to protect plants from cold and wet? Wikipedia, Cold frame. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills
  • Which propagation method develops roots on a stem while the stem is still attached to the parent plant? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 13, Propagation. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills

Horticulture Business and Retailing 5

  • A customer buying a container-grown tree is also offered stakes, mulch and a watering bag to go with it. Which sales technique is this? Wikipedia, Cross-selling. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Horticulture Business and Retailing
  • A garden center buys a flat of 36 annuals for $27.00. What is the cost of each plant? Written to the NOCTI Job Ready Credential Blueprint for Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Horticulture Business and Retailing; the answer is arithmetic on the numbers in the question, worked twice
  • A shrub costs a nursery $12.00. The nursery prices it with a markup of 75% of cost. What is the selling price? Wikipedia, Markup (business). Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Horticulture Business and Retailing; the arithmetic was worked twice
  • Sod is ordered by the square yard. A new lawn measures 45 feet by 30 feet. How many square yards of sod cover it? Written to the NOCTI Job Ready Credential Blueprint for Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Horticulture Business and Retailing; the answer is arithmetic on the numbers in the question, worked twice
  • Which business record is an itemized list of the goods or services a seller furnished to a buyer, with the price and terms of sale? Wikipedia, Invoice. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Horticulture Business and Retailing

Landscape Design 4

  • A designer checks that each shrub on the plant list is hardy in the client's zone. What defines a USDA plant hardiness zone? Wikipedia, Hardiness zone. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Design
  • A plan shows a rectangular gravel sitting area 18 feet long and 12 feet wide, with the gravel 6 inches deep. How many cubic yards of gravel does the plan call for? Written to the NOCTI Job Ready Credential Blueprint for Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Design; the answer is arithmetic on the numbers in the question, worked twice
  • On a residential plan, the trash cans, the compost pile and the storage shed are grouped in one use area. Which area is it? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 19, Landscape Design. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Design
  • Woody plants can be bought container-grown, bare root or as B&B. What does B&B stand for? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 11, Woody Ornamentals, Purchasing. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Design

Landscape Installation and Construction 5

  • A balled shrub is being transplanted. How should the planting hole compare with the root ball? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 11, Woody Ornamentals. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Installation and Construction
  • A crew must break up hard, root-filled ground for a new bed. Which hand tool is made for chopping, digging and prying? Wikipedia, Mattock. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Installation and Construction
  • A garden pond is dug and shaped. Which material is laid in the hole to hold the water? Wikipedia, Pond liner. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Installation and Construction
  • A site plan is drawn at a scale of 1 inch to 8 feet. A walkway measures 4.5 inches on the plan. How long is the walkway to be staked out? Written to the NOCTI Job Ready Credential Blueprint for Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Installation and Construction; the answer is arithmetic on the numbers in the question, worked twice
  • A wooden deck is to be built off the back of a house. Which lumber are decks often built from? Wikipedia, Deck (building). Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape Installation and Construction

Landscape and Turf Maintenance 5

  • A string trimmer has a crankcase-compression two-stroke engine. How is that engine lubricated? Wikipedia, Two-stroke engine, Emissions. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape and Turf Maintenance
  • Grass on a fine lawn is to be cut lower than 1 inch. Which type of mower is preferred? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9, Lawns. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape and Turf Maintenance
  • Which golf course feature is the area around the hole where the grass is cut very short, so that a ball can roll for a long distance? Wikipedia, Golf course, Greens. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape and Turf Maintenance
  • Which group of grasses grows best in spring and fall and less actively in summer? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9, Lawns. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape and Turf Maintenance
  • Why are mower blades kept sharp and balanced? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9, Lawns. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Landscape and Turf Maintenance

Arboriculture 3

  • A limb has been removed with a proper cut. What should be done to the wound? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 11, Woody Ornamentals. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Arboriculture
  • When a branch is removed from a trunk, where is the final cut properly placed? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 11, Woody Ornamentals. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Arboriculture
  • Which layer of a tree trunk is responsible for its increase in diameter? NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 3, Botany. Written to NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping (4149), Arboriculture

How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the competency list of the Job Ready Credential Blueprint for Horticulture-Landscaping (code 4149, version 01, copyright 2011) that NOCTI publishes at https://www.nocti.org/wp-content/uploads/Blueprints/JRHortLand4149.pdf , read 2026-10-16: a written assessment of 171 questions in 3 hours over nine areas (General Knowledge 28%; Pest and Disease Management 12%; Fundamentals of Irrigation 6%; Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills 9%; Horticulture Business and Retailing 11%; Landscape Design 8%; Landscape Installation and Construction 10%; Landscape and Turf Maintenance 9%; Arboriculture 7%), plus a performance assessment of five jobs. This bank holds 50 in those proportions. NOCTI also posts a pilot blueprint, code 4449, marked subject to change (134 questions over eight areas); this bank follows 4149. Every rule and definition was read on 2026-10-16 on the public page named under its question: the North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook of NC State Extension, the OSHA page on landscaping hazards, EPA pages on integrated pest management and pesticide worker safety, the National Pesticide Information Center, and Wikipedia. Every price, length and area in a sum is made up for the drill, and each computed answer is arithmetic that was worked twice. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.

How it works

This free NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping practice test has 50 questions of our own, sorted by the nine areas of the Job Ready blueprint, code 4149. It is unofficial and not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by NOCTI.

Read the full guide

Nine areas, in the blueprint's shares

General Knowledge is 28% of the written assessment: plant parts, taxonomy, soils, nutrients, fertilizers, safety and careers. Pest and Disease Management is 12%, Horticulture Business and Retailing 11%, Landscape Installation and Construction 10%, Basic Nursery/Greenhouse Skills and Landscape and Turf Maintenance 9% each, Landscape Design 8%, Arboriculture 7% and Fundamentals of Irrigation 6%.

Timed at the real pace

Fifty questions in 53 minutes matches the pace of the written assessment. The blueprint prints no pass mark, so a round ends in a score.

What stays outdoors

The five performance jobs are not practiced here: identifying and controlling pests, identifying 4-cycle and 2-cycle engine features, planting a container-grown shrub, pruning a tree and an evergreen shrub, and staking out a site plan.

  • The three numbers on a fertilizer bag are percentages by weight of nitrogen, phosphorus (as P2O5) and potassium (as K2O).
  • Cubic yards: multiply length, width and depth in feet, then divide by 27.
  • Markup is added to cost: an $8.00 plant at a 50% markup sells for $12.00.

Questions and answers

How many questions are on the NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping test?

The Job Ready blueprint, code 4149, lists 171 written questions with an administration time of 3 hours, given in one, two or three sessions. The five performance jobs take another 2 hours.

What is on the NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping test?

Written questions on the blueprint's competencies, among them plant classification, soil pH, fertilizers, integrated pest management, water control devices, propagation, growing structures, markup and profit, landscape use areas, site plans, decks and water features, types of mowers, golf course features and pruning.

Is there a newer NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping blueprint?

NOCTI also posts a pilot blueprint, code 4449, marked as subject to change: 134 questions in 2 hours and 30 minutes over eight areas, the largest being Plant Science at 15%. This page follows 4149.

Where is the NOCTI Horticulture-Landscaping blueprint?

On nocti.org/credentials/blueprints, as a free PDF with the competencies, the share of each area and ten sample questions. None of the samples is used or reworded on this page.

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