Certified Crop Advisor Practice Exam

If a plant can exclude or overcome a disease, it is considered what?

1. Diverse

2. Susceptible

3. Resistant

4. Tolerant

The correct answer is: Resistant

When a plant can exclude or overcome a disease, it is considered resistant. Resistance in plants refers to their ability to prevent the establishment or spread of a pathogen, as well as to tolerate or fend off the effects of the disease once it is present. This capability can be attributed to specific physical or biochemical mechanisms that deter pathogens from infecting the plant or that enable the plant to recover from injury caused by the disease. In contrast, other terms like susceptible refer to plants that are easily affected by diseases, while tolerant describes plants that can withstand certain levels of disease without significant damage. The term diverse relates more to the variety of different plants or genetic traits within a population, which isn’t directly indicative of a plant's ability to resist disease. Understanding these distinctions is essential for effective disease management in crops and for enhancing plant health.