ScopeofWk_Dormant_Stem_Spraying_WoodyVeg(tmplt).pdf

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources is requesting bids for Selective Application of Herbicide

During the Dormant Season to Control Woody Vegetation at Several Wildlife Areas in Northwest Ohio

Name or Title of the Service or Supply: Selective herbicide application during the dormant season targeting woody vegetation in upland fields.

Ordering Division and address:

ODNR, Division of Wildlife, District Two

952 Lima Avenue, Findlay, Ohio 45840

Introduction

The ODNR, Division of Wildlife is seeking contractors to help control woody vegetation in grass fields through herbicide treatment on several Wildlife Areas in Hancock, Wyandot, and Huron Counties. The vegetation communities in upland fields progress through vegetation community succession, where herbaceous vegetation such as grasses and forbs are eventually replaced with shrubs and trees (whether native or non-native). These fields have had shrubs and small trees becoming more numerous every year, which need to be selectively killed through herbicide application. Encroaching woody vegetation mainly consists of autumn olive, cottonwoods, soft maple spp, dogwood spp, willow spp, elm spp, and brambles.

In order to keep these herbaceous fields open, the woody species need to be selectively sprayed during the dormant season after the herbaceous vegetation is top killed by frost. The ideal dormant season application will be conducted in the fall after two hard frosts less than 30 degrees Fahrenheit and before

December 24th to give time for residual herbicides to dissipate prior to emergence of spring-germinating forbs. Dormant season applications will reduce impacts to native herbaceous vegetation and allow it to recolonize areas where woody vegetation has been killed.

A web map of the property boundaries found within the attached maps and landcover can be found online at: https://gis.ohiodnr.gov/MapViewer/?config=ODNRLands. Polygons, where spraying is planned, are included in Figure 1 and these are available in an electronic format (Google Earth KML file) upon request.

Project Specifications

Dormant Stem Herbicide Treatment: This scope of work will be for the dormant stem broadcast and spot spraying of herbicide on encroaching woody vegetation (shrubs, trees, and brambles) within the polygons on several Wildlife Areas as delineated in figure 1. All woody vegetation under 5 inches in stem diameter at breast height (DBH) or less needs to be sprayed. All areas with woody growth must be sprayed in the areas delineated in figures 2 through 5 during the dormant season. Ideally, this will be https://gis.ohiodnr.gov/MapViewer/?config=ODNRLands completed according to the “dormant stem treatment” in the Triclopyr 4 label (e.g. brand name of

Garlon 4 Ultra® may be ideal to use as primary active ingredient, along with basal oil in a water solution). Aminopyralid herbicide (e.g. Terravue® or Milestone®) should be added in the mixture at a low label rate for all woody vegetation sprayed. For vegetation above 2 inches in DBH, high-volume or low-volume applications with handguns would be ideal to target woody stems and a low rate of metsulfuron-methyl may be added during the dormant season to ensure improved kill. Invasive shrubs

(e.g. bush honeysuckle and autumn olive) should also be sprayed along woodland edges adjacent to the field. Care needs to be taken not to kill native woody vegetation in adjacent woodland and fencerow areas. Oak trees and native brambles within 10 feet of established fencerow areas may be left unsprayed at the option of the contractor.

Touch-Up Herbicide Applications: Additional touch-up applications may be needed after a mid-June assessment of the initial dormant stem spray application to assure follow-up coverage of any woody vegetation that was missed. Ideally, this will be completed with low-volume, basal applications of an oil-based herbicide solution containing the above-mentioned chemistry, Crossbow, or other labeled chemistry. Other herbicide methods and chemistry for dormant-stem or growing season touch-up applications may be considered acceptable for use according to label as approved by the project manager. Touch-up applications need to be completed by June 21st, 2025. Extensions for work may be granted at the discretion of the project manager but are not likely.

Mowing Test Strips: To assess the efficacy of mowing vs. the above-mentioned herbicide techniques, test strips need to be mowed in the fields with yellow polygons within 6 inches of ground level. All mowing must take place between July 15th and September 15th, or between January 15th to March 1st.

Ideally, test strips may be mowed prior to spraying to help with visual reference but that is optional.

Areas mapped to be mowed must not be sprayed but areas adjacent to mowing must be sprayed as specified above right up to the edge of the mowed strip to provide a comparison of management techniques for the future. Mowing boundaries can be flagged or marked by ODNR staff for the contractor, as needed. Failure to mow specified areas will result in a 30% deduction on the price for each property.

Suggested Equipment: Due to wetter areas and density of interspersed woody vegetation, spraying methods may be best limited to off-road vehicles (ORV’s) with spray units, using spray booms and spray guns. For dormant-season boom applications, treatment volumes should be at least 20 gallons per acre and cone nozzles may add to effectiveness and herbicide contact with bark of seedlings. At the option of the contractor, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV’s) may also be tested on a portion of application areas, with the approval of the project manager. The contractor should understand that there should be at least 90% mortality of woody species after dormant stem and follow-up herbicide applications are completed in order for final payment to be approved regardless of initial tools utilized.

For mowing, ideal tools may include a rotary mower on a compact track loader (i.e. skid-steer machine) may be ideal, but other mowing equipment and chainsaws may also be effective tools. Ground disturbance must be kept to a minimum and equipment with low ground pressure, is encouraged but not required. Ideally, off-road vehicles would best be outfitted with tracks for low ground-pressure to travel these areas effectively. It is important to note that some areas, such as Wyandot Wildlife Area and Willard Marsh Wildlife Area, have been mowed within the two previous years and there still may be sparse short woody stubble (3-inch in size or less within 12 inches of the ground). Maps of mowing areas are available to the contractor upon request. Low-volume or backpack applications on foot may also be utilized in less-accessible areas, especially for touch-up applications.

The use of GPS-enabled phone or other equipment is recommended for this project but not required.

An electronic Avenza PDF or KML file for Google Earth Pro on an iphone or other GPS-enabled device is available upon request. Spray areas in figure 1 need to be initially treated by December 24th, 2025 and touched up (i.e. retreat vegetation showing no mortality signs 6 weeks after leaf out) prior to June 21st, 2025.

All work shall be conducted Monday through Friday unless prior approval is obtained from the ODNR, Division of Wildlife project manager. All work will need to be completed by June 21st, 2025. The contractor is required to contact the ODNR, Division of Wildlife project manager, at least two business days prior to initially entering the property for work. The vendor will not receive payment until all products and services have been received as per the above specifications and deadlines listed in this document. If the successful bidder does not initiate or complete the work as specified above, the ODNR, Division of Wildlife reserves the right to pro-rate the payment or cancel the purchase order.

A site visit is required prior to bidding. The interested bidder must text a photo of the site to the cell phone of the project contact along with any questions prior to the bid close. Please submit a quote in

Ohiobuys, along with attaching a concise description of proposed methodologies (less than one page if possible) by August 12th, 2025. The herbicide treatment areas will be arranged by line item within the solicitation. After award of the bid, some areas may be excluded due to budget, but typically all or most of the areas will be included in the final project. The contractor needs to be a certified commercial pesticide applicator for the sites included in the application areas shown in figure 1. Field staff employed by the contractor must be skilled in plant identification and able to apply herbicides effectively to target vegetation only, while avoiding non-target, native vegetation. Thank you for your interest and please don’t hesitate to give me a call with any questions!

F.O.B. DESTINATION/PRE-PAID/ALLOWED. The Contractor must provide Deliverables under this

Contract F.O.B. Destination/Pre-Paid/Allowed. The place of destination will be specified by the Ordering

Agency on the agency’s purchase order or other ordering document. Cost of the freight must be borne and paid by the Contractor unless otherwise stated.

All risk of loss, regardless of the cause, will remain with the Contractor until title to the Deliverable passes to the State. Unless otherwise provided in this Contract, the State will determine whether the

Contractor provided each Deliverable required in this Contract and has fully met all work requirements of this Contract. Title to any Deliverables will pass to the State on Acceptance of the Deliverable.

Evaluation. The contract will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder as determined by the State. All Proposals must be submitted through Ohio Buys. Proposals received outside of Ohio Buys will not be considered.

Contract Award. The contract will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder by low lot total. Low lot total will be determined by multiplying the unit cost by the estimated usage listed in the bid and then adding each of the totals together to arrive at a total for all items. Failure to bid all items may result in the bidder being deemed not responsive

Site Visit & Point of Contact

Prior to submitting a bid response, bidders are required to visit the site and text a photo from their visit and any questions to the cellphone (below) of the project contact.

Project Contact:

Justin Harrington

Assistant Wildlife Management Supervisor

ODNR, Division of Wildlife, District Two

952 Lima Avenue, Findlay, Ohio 45840

Cell: 419-236-3463

Email: Justin.Harrington@dnr.state.oh.us mailto:Justin.Harrington@dnr.state.oh.us

Figure 1. Overview map of locations in need of Herbicide application in Hancock, Wyandot, and Huron

Counties, Ohio.

Spot Spray Spot Spray

Figure 2. Application Area in Hancock County Wildlife Area #3, field 3 (11.1ac)

Coordinates for Google Maps:

40.848706, -83.796294

Figure 3. Application Area in Hancock County Wildlife Area #2, Field 2 (15.8 ac).

41.124889, -83.722071

Figure 4. Application areas at Wyandot Wildlife Area, fields 4 (7.2ac), 6a (4.6ac), 11 (4.3ac), and 18

(2.2ac).

40.925884, -83.381673

Figure 5. Application areas at Willard Marsh Wildlife Area, fields 1 (8.9ac), 3a (9.6ac), 4 (7.2ac), and 32

(12.2ac).

41.011885, -82.780811