MDARD Michigan Core Pesticide Applicator Practice Exam

If you have calibrated your equipment to spray 50 gallons per acre, how many pounds of formulation should you add to the tank to make 50 gallons of finished spray if the label calls for 3 lb of formulation per 100 gallons?

1. 1.5 pounds

2. 3 pounds

3. 2 pounds

4. 4.5 pounds

The correct answer is: 1.5 pounds

To determine how many pounds of formulation to add when preparing a finished spray volume of 50 gallons, we can start with the label recommendation of 3 pounds of formulation per 100 gallons. This means that for every 100 gallons of spray mixture, 3 pounds of the formulation are required. Since the desired volume is 50 gallons, we can set up a proportion based on the label instructions. We can express the relationship as follows: If 100 gallons requires 3 pounds, then 50 gallons will require \( (3 \, \text{lb} \times \frac{50 \, \text{gallons}}{100 \, \text{gallons}}) \). This simplifies to: \( 3 \times 0.5 = 1.5 \) pounds. Therefore, you would need to add 1.5 pounds of formulation to the tank to achieve a total of 50 gallons of finished spray. This calculation is crucial to ensure that the application rate is maintained as per the pesticide label, which is designed to maximize efficacy while minimizing potential environmental impacts.