The UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences follows the UC Davis editorial style guide. Here is auxiliary glossary of plant names, terms and rules useful to college communicators.
A
above-ground (adj.)
AES – Agricultural Experiment Station
ad hoc (adj.)
advisor – farm advisor
aesthetic; not esthetic
agribusiness (n.)
agritourism (n.)
agrobacterium (n.)
agrochemical (n.)
agroecology (n.)
agroterrorism (n.)
airborne (adj.)
allelopathy (n.)
alternaria leaf spot – plant disease
alumnus (one male); alumna (one female); alumni (male or mixed group); alumnae (female group); use alum sparingly
ammonification (n.)
Anheuser-Busch Foundation
ANR – Agriculture and Natural Resources
anthracnose – plant disease
antibacterial
antimicrobial (adj.)
antitranspirant (n.)
arabic numerals (per Chicago)
archaeology; not archeology
armillaria root rot – plant disease
armyworm – insect
assembly member – two words; but “assemblyman” and “assemblywoman” are one word
aster yellows – plant disease
B
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) – insecticide
bactericide – material that kills bacteria
bandedwing whitefly – insect
bare root (n.)
bare-root (adj.)
barnyardgrass – plant name
bedbug – insect
beehive – one word
beekeeper – one word
beet armyworm – insect
bells-of-Ireland – plant name
bermudagrass – plant name
biflagellate (adj.)
bigeyed bug – insect
bindweed – plant name
bioassay (n.)
bioclimate (n.)
biocontrol (n.)
biodiversity (n.)
biofumigation (n.)
biomass (n.)
biorational (adj.)
bittercress – plant name
black vine weevil – insect
blood meal – fertilizer
bluegrass – plant name
bollworm – insect
bonemeal – fertilizer
botrytis – plant disease
breast-feeding
broadleaf (adj.)
broad-spectrum (adj.)
brussels sprouts – (not capitalized, per Chicago)
buckthorn – plant name
budwood (n.)
budworm – insect
buildup (n.)
build up (vt.)
bylaws
bypass
by-product (n.)
C
cabbageworm – insect
campus – always lower case
campus-based (adj.)
campuswide
canceling
car pool – two words
catalog – not catalogue
caterpillar – insect
centipede – insect
cephalothorax – insect body part
cercospora leaf spot – plant disease
chairholder (n.)
chaparral – vegetation type
cheese – Monterey Jack cheese; Muenster cheese; cheddar cheese; Swiss cheese; mozzarella cheese; Asiago; provolone; Parmesan; Romano; Colby
cheese maker – two words
cheeseweed – plant name
chemigation (n.)
chickweed – plant name
chilling-sensitive (adj.)
chinook salmon – “chinook” not capitalized
chlorinated hydrocarbon (n.)
chrysalid – insect stage
cleanup (n.)
close-up (adj.)
clubroot – plant disease
co-author (n.)
co-brand
Coca-Cola
co-chair (n.)
codevelop
codirector
coed (n.)
Coffee House – capitalize the proper name; other references, coffeehouse is one word
coffeeberry – plant name
co-host (n.)
cold-water fish (adj.)
colletotrichum leaf spot – plant disease
co-locating
commencement – use lowercase
community-based agriculture
coneflower – plant name
convergent lady beetle – insect
co-owner (n.)
coresearchers
corn earworm – insect
cosponsor (n.)
cost-effective (adj.)
cost-share program (adj.)
cover crop (n.)
co-worker (n.)
cow’s milk – not cows’ milk
crabgrass – plant name
cropland (n.)
cross-country (adj.)
cross-disciplinary (adj.)
cross-fertilization (n.)
cross-fertilize (vt.)
cross-pollinate (vt)
cross-pollination (n.)
cross section (n.)
cudweed – plant name
culture-indexed stock (n.)
curvularia leaf spot – plant disease
cutworm – insect
cylindrocladium rot – plant disease
cymbidium orchid – plant name
cyromazine – insect growth regulator
D
damping-off (adj.) – plant disease
dasheen mosaic virus – plant disease
database (n.) – one word
daylily – plant name
Dean’s Honors List – capitalize
decision-making (adj.)
decision making (n.)
decision maker (n.)
degree-day monitoring (n.)
dematophora root rot – plant disease
desiccate (v.)
diamondback moth – insect
dieback (n.)
diplodia disease – plant disease
direct-seeded (adj.)
disease-free (adj.)
disease-suppressive (adj.)
disk, disking (plowing operation)
disk flower – flower type
doctoral (adj.) – doctoral degree; doctoral student
doctorate (n) – received his doctorate
dos and don’ts
dot-com
double-sided tape (n.)
downy mildew – plant disease
drip irrigation (n.)
drip-irrigated (adj.)
drought-tolerant plant (n.)
dryland (adj.)
duckweed – plant name
dumb cane – plant name
dutch oven (per Chicago)
E
early-season (adj.)
earwig – insect
ebb and flow irrigation (n.)
ecosystem (n.)
ecotourism (n.)
ectomycorrhizae (n.)
edema (n.) – formerly oedema
EIR – environmental impact report
elderberry – plant name
electrostatic sprayer (n.)
eminent domain (n.)
Encarsia formosa – insect
encyrtid wasp – insect
entomopathogenic (adj.)
entomosporium leaf spot – plant disease
entyloma smut – plant disease
EPA – Environmental Protection Agency
erwinia bacterial blight – plant disease
esthetic – don’t use; aesthetic should be used
ethylene – plant hormone
eutrophication (n.)
evapotranspiration (ET) (n.)
everblooming (adj.)
everlasting (adj.)
ex officio – do not italicize
exoskeleton – insect body part
F
fairy-ring spot – plant disease
fallowing (n.)
farm advisor – not adviser
farmers market – no hyphen
farmland (n.)
farmworker (n.)
farmyard (n.)
FDA – Food and Drug Administration
fenoxycarb – insect growth regulator
fertigation (n.)
fieldcress – plant name
field crop (n.)
field day (n.)
field-grown (adj.)
field-test (vt.)
field trial (n.)
fieldwork (n.)
fire spot – plant disease
fireweed – plant name
flame weeding (n.)
fleabane – plant name
floodplain (n.)
flowerpot (n.)
flowmeter (n.)
focusing
follow-up (n., adj.)
follow up (v.)
foodborne
foot-and-mouth disease
forced-air cooling (n.)
forewing – insect part
forget-me-not – plant name
foxglove – plant name
free rein
french dressing (per Chicago)
french fries (per Chicago)
freshwater (n., adj.)
fruit fly – insect
fruitwood (n.)
fruitworm – insect
fuchsia – plant name (not fuschsia)
Fuller rose beetle – insect
full time (n.)
full-time (adj.)
fundraise (v.)
fundraiser (n.)
fundraising (adj.; n.)
fungicide (n.)
fungus gnat – insect
fusarium – plant disease; don’t italicize the common name, only the scientific name
G
gall midge – insect
garden symphylan – insect
gases (n.)
Geraldton waxflower – plant name
gibberellic acid – plant hormone
gibberellin – plant hormone
GIF – Graphic Interchange Format
Ginkgo biloba – plant name; not gingko
glasshouse (n.) – greenhouse
glassy-winged sharpshooter – insect
glyphosate – herbicide
goldenrod – plant name
GPS – global positioning system
grapevine (n.)
grassroots (adj.) – a grassroots effort
grass roots (n.) – the roots of a grass plant
gray – preferred over grey
gray mold – botrytis plant disease
green shield scale – insect
green thumb (n.) – he has a green thumb
greengrocer (n.)
greenhouse (n.)
greenwaste (n.)
groundbreaking – one word
ground cover (n.)
groundsel – plant name
groundskeeper (n.)
groundwater (n.)
gypsophila – plant name; not gypsophilia
H
habitats (plural of habitat; use an “s” at the end)
half-day (adj.)
halosulfuron – herbicide
hand-pulling (n.)
hand-watering (n.)
hand-weeding (n.)
hands-on (adj.)
hardwood (n.)
hazelnut
headset (n.)
hedgerow (n.)
helminthosporium leaf spot – plant disease
hemimetabolous – insect metamorphosis
Hemiptera – insect order
heterosporium leaf spot – plant disease
high-value (adj.)
high-volume (adj.)
high-yielding crops
hindwing – insect part
hoeing – weeding with a hoe
holometabolous – insect metamorphosis
home page – two words
Homoptera – insect order
honey bee – insect, two words (many people make it a single word, but that is not correct)
honeydew – insect residue
hoplia beetle – insect
horseweed – plant name
houseplant – one word
hover fly – insect
HTML – HyperText Markup Language
hue and cry
hydroponic (adj.)
I
imidacloprid – insecticide
in-depth (adj.)
india ink (per Chicago)
information superhighway – lower case
in-kind (adj.)
in-person (adj.)
in regard to – not in regards to
in-residence; artist-in-residence; professor-in-residence
insectary plant (n.)
in-service training (n.)
interdisciplinary
Internet (n.) – capitalize
iodomethane (n.)
ion-specific meter (n.)
IPM – integrated pest management
iprodione – fungicide
iron phosphate bait – molluscicide
isoxaben – herbicide
italic type (per Chicago)
J
Jack-in-the-pulpit – plant name
JavaScript – computer term
jimson weed – plant name
johnsongrass – plant name
JPEG – joint photographic experts group
just deserts (not desserts)
K
katydid – insect
kinetin
kinoprene – insect growth regulator
knotweed – plant name
L
lacewing – insect
lady beetle – insect
lady’s slipper – Cypripedium orchid; plant name
lambsquarters – plant name
landowner – one word
land-grant institution
land-grant university
Land O Lakes cheese; Land O Lakes butter; but company is Land O’Lakes
landowner (n.)
late-season (adj.)
late-summer (adj.)
leafburn (n.)
leaf drop (n.)
leafhopper – insect
leafminer – insect
lerp psyllid – insect
lesser-seeded bittercress – plant name
lime sulfur – pesticide
limnology (n.)
Listserve – capitalize (trademarked name)
liverwort – plant name
lombardy poplar (per Chicago)
long-distance (adj.)
longtailed mealybug – insect
long-term (adj.)
long-term sustainability
lowercase – one word
low-volume sprayer (n.)
lygus bug – insect
lysimeter (n.)
M
macronutrient (n.)
makeup (n.) – cosmetics
manila envelope (per Chicago)
manometer (n.)
March fly – insect
marketplace (n.)
master gardener (n.) – do not capitalize when describing a person as a master gardener; capitalize the program name, however
mealybug – insect
Medfly – capitalize; insect
medieval
metabolomics
metam sodium (n.) – Vapam fumigant
methyl bromide – pesticide
methyl iodide – pesticide
microclimate (n.)
micronutrient (n.)
microorganism (n.)
microscreening (n.)
microsprinkler (n.)
midseason
mid-September
midvein (n.)
millipede – insect
minute pirate bug – insect
mistletoe – plant name
molluscicide – kills snails
mosquito-borne disease (n.)
mosquito-eating fish (n.)
mosquitoes – (plural)
Mother Nature – capitalized
moth fly – insect
mouthpart – referring to insects
multicampus
multicellular
multidisciplinary
mycofungicide (n.)
mycoparasite (n.)
mycopesticide (n.)
mycoplasma (n.)
mycorrhizae (n.)
myrothecium leaf spot – plant disease
N
naked-lady – plant name
napropamide – herbicide
naval – shipping; navy
navel – oranges; stomach area
navel orangeworm – insect
near-shore oceanography
neem oil – insecticide
neurotoxin (n.)
New Guinea impatiens – plant name
NGO – nongovernmental organization
nightshade – plant name
nitrification (n.)
non; in general, no hyphen when used as a prefix
nondiscrimination
nongovernmental (adj.)
nonharvested (adj.)
noninfectious (adj.)
non-native (adj.)
nonpoint source pollutant (n.)
nonprofit (adj.)
nonresident (n.)
nonvariegated (adj.)
Northern California
not-for-profit (adj.)
NSF – National Science Foundation
nutsedge – plant name
O
oedema – former name for edema
off-campus (adj.)
on-farm (adj.)
online – one word when referring to computers
on-site (adj.)
optivisor – magnifier lens
orange tortrix – insect
orchids – cattleya, cymbidium, cypripedium, dendrobium, phalaenopsis
orchidfly – insect
organophosphate – pesticide
orthopaedic; not orthopedic
out-of-state (adj.)
overdraft (n.)
over-fishing
overwater (v.)
overwinter (v.)
ovulinia petal blight – plant disease
P
Pacific Northwest (n.)
pampas grass – plant name
parasitism (n.)
parasitoid (n.)
PDF – portable document format
peer-reviewed (adj.)
penicillium corm rot – plant disease
pennyroyal – plant name
percent; not per cent
peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) – smog component
per-unit cost
pH – acid/base measure
phalaenopsis orchid – plant name
pheromone (n.)
phialophora wilt – plant disease
phosphorus – not phosphorous
photolability (n.)
phyllosticta leaf spot – plant disease
phytophthora root rot – plant disease; don’t italicize the common name, only the scientific name
phytoplasma (n.)
phytotoxic (adj.)
phytotoxicity (n.)
Pierce’s disease (n.)
pigweed – plant name
pillbug – insect
pincushion flower – plant name
pixel – computer term
plant-free period (n.)
plant-growth modeling (n.)
plant-tissue analysis (n.)
plow – not plough
plug-in hybrids – autos
plug-ins – computer term
pokeweed – plant name
policymaker (n.)
portobello mushroom (not portabella)
postdoctoral (n.)
postemergent – in reference to herbicides
postharvest (adj.) – not post harvest or post-harvest
postindustrial (adj.)
potash – fertilizer
pot-bound (adj.)
powdery mildew – plant disease
PowerPoint (n.)
precooled (adj.)
predrought (adj.)
preemergent – in reference to herbicides
preharvest (adj.)
preplant (adj.)
preschool
president-elect
prior to – use before
pro-active (adj.)
problem-solving – hyphenated, per AP
proleg – insect leg part
protonymph – insect stage
pseudomonas leaf spot – plant disease
psyllid – insect
puncturevine – plant name
pyrethrin – insecticide
pyrethroid – insecticide
pyrethrum – insecticide
pythium root rot – plant disease; don’t italicize the common name, only the scientific name
Q
Quad; Quadrangle – always capitalize when referring to the area by the Memorial Union
Queen Anne’s lace – plant name
R
ramularia leaf spot – plant disease
redgum lerp psyllid – insect
reduced-risk pesticide (adj.)
reentry (n.)
regard – in regard to, not in regards to
repellent (n.)
RFP – request for proposals
RIC – research and information center
rhizoctonia root rot – plant disease
rhizopus soft rot – plant disease
right-of-way
rock wool – plant growing medium
roman numerals (per Chicago)
root-knot nematode
rootstock
rose curculio – insect
roseslug – insect
row cover (n.)
runoff (n.)
ryegrass – plant name
S
safflower – plant name
salt-tolerant (adj.)
SAR – sodium absorption ratio
sawfly – insect
sclerotinia – plant disease
sclerotium – plant disease
scotch whisky (per Chicago)
sea water (n.)
septoria leaf spot – plant disease
sethoxydim – herbicide
sharecropper
sharecropping
shareholder (n.)
sharpshooter – insect
shelf life (n.)
shepherd’s-purse – plant name
shore fly – insect
shortcut
shortfall
sign up (vi)
sign-up (n. or adj.)
silver thiosulfate (STS) (n.) – prolongs flower life
silverleaf whitefly – insect
sixspotted thrips – insect
snowmelt (n.)
sodium azide (n.)
soilborne (adj.)
soilless (adj.)
sooty mold – plant disease
Southern California
sowbug – insect
sowthistle – plant name
sphagnum peat moss (n.)
spittlebug – insect
spreader-sticker (n.)
spreadsheet (n.)
springtail – insect
starthistle – plant name
state-of-the-art (adj.)
statewide (adj.)
stemmata (n.)
stink bug – insect
stormwater (n.)
strawflower – plant name
streptomycin – pesticide
stress-induced (adj.)
strobilurin – fungicide
subirrigation (n.)
sublease (v.)
sub-Saharan
sugar beet (n.) – two words
sunburn (n.) – plant leaf burn
sunflower – plant name