attachment_E_plant_acquisition_32_93_15.pdf

ATTACHMENT E

Section 32 93 15

PLANT ACQUISITION

Table of Contents

Part 1 – GENERAL

1.1 Description

1.2 Definitions

1.3 Minimum Qualifications

1.4 Performance

1.5 Quality Control

1.6 Inspections

1.7 Times and Conditions

1.8 Measurement and Payment

Part 2 – PRODUCTS

2.1 Plant Material

2.2 Growing Containers

Part 3 – EXECUTION

3.1 Examination

3.2 Collection

3.3 Nursery Operations

3.4 Handling and Storage

3.5 Shipment and Delivery

3.6 Disposal of Undelivered Plant Material

Section 32 93 15

PLANT ACQUISITION

Part 1 - GENERAL

1.1 DESCRIPTION

Furnish all labor, material, equipment, and services necessary to provide complete collection, propagation, maintenance, storage and delivery of plant material, according to this Scope of Work and as directed by the Contracting Officer.

1.1.1 Project Site

See Exhibit C and D for project site locations.

1.1.2 Collection Zone

Collect Plant propagules (harvest) within the historic floodplain of the Sacramento River from Red Bluff to the North and Knights Landing to the south. Identify collection sites for approval by the Contracting Officer before the start of any material collection. Obtain approval from property owners before accessing their land for plant collection purposes. Follow all rules and regulations of governing agencies and private parties having authority over the collection areas.

1.2 DEFINITIONS

The following terms referenced herein are defined as follows:

1.2.1 Contractor: The primary contractor awarded herein.

1.2.2 Nursery: The primary contractor’s nursery location or subcontractor where the plants will be grown and stored.

1.2.3 Project Site: The location where the plants will be installed by the installation contactor.

1.2.4 COR: The Contracting Officer’s Representative.

1.2.5 Government: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District.

1.2.6 Delivery: The act of transporting the plant material to the project site and placing it in the appropriate delivery area, as coordinated with the installation contractor. Delivery is not complete until the hardening-off requirements have been satisfied.

1.3 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

The plants shall be grown at a plant nursery, which performs activities required here with 5 years, minimum, experience in, and have the facilities to perform, collection, propagation, maintenance and storage of the plant material indicated in Attachment C Propagule Schedule.

The Contractor shall possess a current California State Nursery License.

1.4 PERFORMANCE

1.4.1 Declaration of Material Availability

The Contractor is responsible for ensuring that the propagules, for the plant species required in Attachment C Propagule Schedule, are available for collection, propagation and delivery within the time required. The Contractor shall declare in writing, in his/her bid to the Government, the unavailability of any viable propagule for the indicated species and its resulting impact to on-time delivery. The Government reserves the right to disqualify any bid based on the Contractor’s declaration of the unavailability of plant source material at the time of award.

1.4.2 Warranty

All container grown plants shall be guaranteed to be healthy, without insects or disease, and in a vigorous growing condition at the time of delivery.

1.4.3 Plant Growth Standards

The container plants top growth shall be in proportion to its root development. The plant shall exhibit proper form for each species and meet all the branching standards as indicated herein.

Plants that do not meet all the minimum requirements will be rejected by the Government and shall be the responsibility of the Contractor to secure acceptable material at no additional cost to the Government.

• Species Form and Top Growth: Tree species shall be grown with a single, non-headed leader. The plants top growth shall be sufficiently large enough for the specified container it is being grown in. The nursery shall time the germination and propagation of the propagule so that it is at the proper size at the indicated delivery time. See Attachment C Propagule Schedule for specific container/species. Seedling top growth to nursery standards. The Contracting Officer may reject undersized and oversized material. For woody plants, the plant shall have a main leader with caliper development and growth so that it is not spindly and is able to support itself in an upright position, without staking. For grass plants, the plant shall have multiple tillers, with each tiller having a minimum of 3-4 visible leaves. Each tiller shall have its own root system. The plant shall be in a healthy condition without signs of stress, disease, pest or mechanical damage.

• Root Development: The plants root system shall have a main root that is unkinked and free from swirling. Secondary roots shall be well developed and be capable of binding the root and soil mass together and retaining its shape when removed from its container.

1.4 QUALITY CONTROL

1.5.1 Supervision

The Contractor is responsible for direct supervision and actions of the Contractor's personnel and the personnel of any subcontractors. The Contractor shall provide all quality control for the deliverables.

1.5.2 Removal of Unacceptable Plant Material

Plant material not meeting the Contracting Officer's approval shall immediately be removed from the project site at the Contractor's expense. The Contractor shall incur any additional expenses required because of material not meeting the requirements of this Scope of Work.

1.6 INSPECTIONS

1.6.1 Nursery Observations

The COR will conduct periodic site visits (at his option) to the nursery to observe the progress of the plants growth and general nursery operations.

1.6.2 Planting Site Inspection

Immediately after plant material delivery to the project site, the COR and Contractor shall inspect the plant material for injury, disease, and insect infestation. At the Contractor's expense, all plant material problems shall be corrected, within 5 working days of the date of the initial delivery.

1.6.3 Plant Approvals

Final approval of all plant material by the Contracting Officer will be reserved until time of delivery at the delivery site. Plants that are substandard in the opinion of the Contracting Officer will not be accepted. The actual number of plants grown will allow for a small amount of destructive sampling for each species at this observation.

1.6.4 Replacement Plantings

The Contractor shall be responsible for any additional preparation of plants necessary to complete the contract, which resulted from plant disapproval or substandard plant material. All plant replacements will be subject to inspection by the Contracting Officer during its growing period and upon delivery.

1.7 TIMES AND CONDITIONS

The Contractor's strict conformance to the project schedule is essential for the success of this project. The Contractor shall be responsible for coordinating and scheduling the collection, propagation, maintenance, storage and delivery of material necessary to complete the work and for ensuring that subcontractors do the same as quickly and efficiently as possible in conformance with the project schedule. The project schedule shall be as follows, unless otherwise directed by the Contracting Officer:

1.7.1 Collection Period

The Contractor shall collect the material in coordination with the planting schedule. Plant material shall be collected at the first opportunity after contract award when propagules are viable for collection or harvest.

1.7.2 Propagation Period

The Contractor shall time the plants propagation to ensure the plants are at the required size at delivery. Each species growth rate and required container size at delivery shall be considered when the propagule is germinated and/or transplanted to final container sizes.

1.7.3 Delivery Period

See Project Schedule.

1.8 MEASUREMENT AND PAYMENT

Payment items for the work of this contract for which contract payments will be made are listed in the PRICING SCHEDULE. All costs for items of work shall be included in the listed item most closely associated with the work involved. The price and payment made for each item listed shall constitute full compensation for furnishing all labor, materials, and equipment, and performing any associated Contractor quality control, environmental protection, meeting safety requirements, tests and reports, and for performing all work required for which separate payment is not otherwise provided.

Part 2 – PRODUCTS

2.1 PLANT MATERIAL

2.1.1 Plant Species and Quantities

The Contractor shall be responsible for providing each of the following species at the quantities and in the container sizes as indicated in Attachment C Propagule Schedule.

2.1.2 Substitutions

Substitutions will not be allowed, unless, approval is given in writing by the Contracting Officer.

It is the Contractor’s responsibility to document why they were not able to secure the required amount of plants and/or species or container sizes or pole cuttings and submit to the Contracting Officer. The Contractor shall make recommendations of substitute species to be used and where they can be secured. Substitutions are subject to government approval, and may not be granted if insufficient reason, or evidence that the substitution will work well is not provided.

2.2 GROWING CONTAINERS

Provide, grow and deliver plants in commercially available containers made of durable plastic fabrication and designed to create a deep root system. Substitution of container size or pole cuttings for container plants will only be allowed with the approval of the Government.

Proposals for changes in container size shall be provided with the work plan in the solicitation and are subject to government approval. Approval of container size changes shall be given by the Government with approval of the work plan. No additional charges for substitutions will be allowed. Containers shall have interior vertical ribs that train roots downward and guard against swirling. The bottom of the containers shall have drainage holes for air-pruning. Container sizes referenced herein shall be as follows:

2.2.1 Treeband

Treebands (TB) shall have a capacity of 20 cubic inches, 2.25" sq at the top and 5" cell depth.

2.2.2 Deepot 40

Deepot 40s (D40) shall have vertical ribs to train roots downward and a bottom drainage hole with 3 or 4 side drain holes on the tapered end. The cells shall be capable of being individually rearranged in containment trays. D40s shall have a capacity of 40 cubic inches, with a 2.5 inches dia. and 10 inches cell depth.

2.2.3 Treepot 4

Treepot 4s (T4) shall have vertical ribs to train roots downward, keeping the roots free of swirling and a bottom drainage hole. T4s shall have a capacity of 173 cubic inches, with a 4 inches width and 14 inches depth.

Part 3 – EXECUTION

3.1 EXAMINATION

3.1.1 Verification of Collection Site Conditions

Determine and verify collection site conditions before the start of collection. Adjustments necessary to accommodate or to minimize impacts on these conditions shall be made at the Contractor's expense.

3.1.2 Flood Conditions

The Contractor is hereby notified that access to the collection and delivery sites could be impeded due to possible floodwater inundation or discharges from rainfall, surface water, or subsurface water at any time during the year. The Contractor should expect periodic inundation of some collection sites by high water during the rainy season.

3.2 COLLECTION

3.2.1 Site Access Approval and Permits

The Contractor shall be responsible for obtaining and paying all fees for site access and any plant collection permits required for this project.

3.2.2 Collection Procedures and Methods

Plant material shall be collected and propagated according to standard collection, propagation, and nursery standards. Plants shall be nursery grown of healthy, vigorous stock free of insects and disease. At the time of collection, cutting material shall be marked and bundled by species, to differentiate plant species at the time of planting.

3.2.3 Material Sources

The Contractor is responsible for the collection of required plant material. Propagules shall be collected from multiple representative material sources to ensure the genetic diversity and viability of the material. The Contractor shall select appropriate material for propagation of the required plants. Diseased and unhealthy donor material shall be avoided. The Contractor’s collection efforts shall leave minimum impacts to source sites. At no time shall material sources be denuded of plants or stripped of all seed. All Sambucus mexicana, Blue elderberry, shall be started from seed. If the timing is not right for viable seed collection of the Blue elderberry, the Contractor shall coordinate and get permission with the COR prior to any cutting collection.

3.2.4 Collection Site Cleanup

The Contractor shall clean up all areas of debris that was caused by their plant material collection operations or disturbed as a result of their presence. Upon completion of their operations, the Contractor shall remove any debris, excess material and dirt, and extraneous equipment resulting or used during their operations.

3.2.5 Dust Control

The Contractor shall perform a good faith effort to minimize the creation of dust at all times during collection operations. At no time shall vehicles or equipment exceed a speed that causes dust disturbances to the adjacent properties.

3.3 NURSERY OPERATIONS

3.3.1 Growing Conditions

The Contractor shall provide all housing, equipment, materials, nutrients, water, propagule and care to ensure each plant develops properly. The plants shall be grown in a nursery environment, which has proper housing and shade structures for propagating each required plant material.

3.3.2 Insects and Disease

All plant material shall be free of insects and disease. If a target species is prone to disease, extra effort in surface cleansing during preparation may be requested to retard infection. Routine surface cleaning of collected material is expected.

3.4 HANDLING AND STORAGE

3.4.1 Handling Material

At all times, the Contractor shall handle all material professionally to ensure that the plants and planting supplies are not damaged during storage, handling, and shipping.

3.4.2 Nursery Storage

Before delivery, all plants shall be stored in such a manner to prevent damage from sunlight;

moisture, or contact with vehicles, equipment and tools. Shade, frost, and wind protection shall be used if necessary to protect the health of the plants. Plants shall be maintained and kept moist at all times.

3.5 SHIPMENT AND DELIVERY

3.5.1 Plant Labels

Deliver plant material to the job site with durable, waterproof labels indicating the correct plant name in conformance to Attachment C Propagule Schedule contained in this Scope of Work.

Labeling may be limited to identifying groups of plants of the same species contained by a common device, i.e., tray, pallet, etc. through delivery to the project site.

3.5.2 Delivery Responsibility

Pick up plants from the nursery and deliver to the project site. Coordination of delivery time and location shall be made with the nursery, Installation Contractor, and the COR. Upon delivery to the project site, all plant material will be observed by the COR to prevent the acceptance of damaged or otherwise unsuitable plant material. Plants shall be delivered in the containers sizes indicated in Attachment C Propagule Schedule. Unacceptable plant material shall be replaced with plants of similar size and species within 5 working days at the Contractor's expense.

3.5.3 Delivery Vehicles

Delivery vehicles shall have closed beds to minimize windburn to plant material during transport.

3.5.4 Hardening-off Plant Material

Before delivery of the plant material, all plant material shall be hardened-off for a minimum of 2 weeks to project site conditions/temperatures. This includes plants grown in shade houses or greenhouses to prevent leaf or stem burn from occurring after delivery.

3.6 DISPOSAL OF UNDELIVERED PLANT MATERIAL

It is the Contractor’s responsibility to dispose of all rejected, surplus or unused plants at no cost to the Government. The Contractor shall coordinate with the Government prior to taking disposal action.