CLARB CLARB Planting Design and Horticulture Questions and Answers 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does the term 'xeriscaping' primarily emphasize in landscape design?
- Use of exotic tropical plants for visual impact
- Water-efficient landscaping using drought-tolerant plants and soil management (Correct answer)
- Formal garden design with geometric planting patterns
- Dense planting schemes for privacy screening
Correct answer: Water-efficient landscaping using drought-tolerant plants and soil management
Xeriscaping is a landscaping approach that reduces or eliminates the need for supplemental irrigation by using drought-adapted plants and efficient water management practices.
Question 2: Which plant community classification describes a stable, self-perpetuating community in long-term equilibrium with the local climate?
- Pioneer community
- Seral stage
- Climax community (Correct answer)
- Edge community
Correct answer: Climax community
A climax community is the final, stable stage of ecological succession that remains in dynamic equilibrium with local environmental conditions without further directional change.
Question 3: In landscape specifications, the abbreviation 'B&B' refers to what method of plant material preparation?
- Branch and bole
- Balled and burlapped (Correct answer)
- Bare and bundled
- Base and branching
Correct answer: Balled and burlapped
Balled and burlapped (B&B) describes trees and shrubs with their root system encased in a soil ball and wrapped in burlap for transport and installation.
Question 4: What does 'succession planting' mean in landscape design?
- Replacing diseased plants with disease-resistant varieties in sequence
- Staggering plants with different bloom times to provide continuous seasonal interest (Correct answer)
- Installing plants in the exact order they were listed in the specifications
- Using plants arranged from tallest to shortest in the planting plan
Correct answer: Staggering plants with different bloom times to provide continuous seasonal interest
Succession planting uses plants with staggered bloom or peak ornamental periods so that as one plant fades, another comes into its prime display.
Question 5: Which plant characteristic is most important when designing for year-round interest in a temperate US climate?
- Rapid growth rate to quickly fill the space
- Four-season ornamental qualities including bloom, foliage, fruit, and winter structure (Correct answer)
- Large leaf size for bold textural impact
- Dense evergreen canopy for year-round screening
Correct answer: Four-season ornamental qualities including bloom, foliage, fruit, and winter structure
Plants offering spring flowers, summer foliage, fall color or fruit, and interesting bark or structure in winter provide continuous visual interest across all four seasons.
Question 6: What soil pH range is generally optimal for most landscape plants grown in the continental United States?
- 4.0–5.0
- 5.5–7.0 (Correct answer)
- 7.5–8.5
- 8.5–9.5
Correct answer: 5.5–7.0
Most landscape plants grow best in slightly acidic to neutral soil with a pH of 5.5 to 7.0, the range at which essential nutrients are most available for plant uptake.
CLARB CLARB Planting Design and Horticulture Questions and Answers 2
What does the term 'xeriscaping' primarily emphasize in landscape design?