Which formulations are ready to use and contain a low percentage of active ingredients plus a very fine, dry inert carrier (talc, chalk, clay, nut hulls, or volcanic ash) that can drift easily?

• A. Dusts
• B. Wettable Powders
• C. Flowables
• D. WDG/DF

Answer: (A)

Dust formulations are ready-to-use pesticides that are made as a fine, dry powder carried by inert materials such as talc, chalk, clay, nut hulls, or volcanic ash. The active ingredient is present in a relatively low percentage, which keeps the product as a lightweight powder suitable for applying to surfaces, cracks, and crevices. Because the material is so fine, it can become airborne and drift with air currents, which is a hallmark of dusts and explains why they’re used in places where direct contact with pests is needed.

Wettable powders, by contrast, must be mixed with water to form a suspension for spraying; flowables are liquids with suspended solids applied as sprays; and WDG/DF products are granules or dry-flowable forms that are dispersed in water and generally do not behave as airborne dusts.