87 -- Longleaf Pine Seedlings

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ONLY (NOT A RFP) TO SEE IF THERE ARE ANY NURSERY VENDORS THAT CAN PERFORM THE WORK BELOW BY PLANTING SEASON TIME (17 Nov 08) FOR EGLIN's JACKSON GUARD. PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT FY08 NURSERY?LONGLEAF PINE GROWING CONTAINERIZED LONGLEAF PINE SEEDLINGS (SHORT PLUG) TO BE PLANTED IN FY09 1.0 DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES The Contractor shall provide all facilities, plant, labor, equipment, and materials to perform all work required to pick up longleaf pine seeds from a processor, germinate the seeds, culture longleaf pine seedlings in short-plug containers, deliver 750,000 containerized longleaf pine seedlings for planting on Eglin Air Force Base (AFB), Florida, and provide on-site refrigerated storage at Jackson Guard, Eglin AFB. The Contractor?s nursery shall be located in USDA plant hardiness zones 8 or 9. 1.1 Seeds and Seed Pickup Seedlings shall be grown from seed previously harvested on Eglin AFB and currently held in cold storage by the Knud Nielsen Co. in Evergreen, Alabama. The Contractor shall arrange to pick up the seed from the Knud Nielsen Co. at the contractor's expense. Seed will be furnished by the Government at no cost to the Contractor unless seed is lost due to negligence by the Contractor. Specific longleaf pine seedlots to be used in this contract were identified and will be tested for quality by the U. S. Forest Service?s National Tree Seed Laboratory in Dry Branch, Georgia. A sample of the seedlot shall be kept by the Contractor for reference testing. It is recommended that the Contractor test the seed quality when it arrives from the nursery. The Contractor is responsible for any seed treatments, sorting, and/or tracking of seed. Seedlot integrity shall be maintained by the Contractor. Seedlings produced shall be identified by the seedlot number used. All Government-furnished seed shall be identified and stored by the Contractor at the Contractor's expense until ready for sowing. Seed shall be kept at 35? F to 38? F from the date of pickup until sowing. Cold storage charges that may result from storing or handling the seed shall be borne by the contractor. 1.2 Nursery Activities The seed from drums (seedlots) with 28-day germination tests having a greater than 75% germination rate shall be single-sowed in the seedling containers. Seed from drums where the 28-day germination tests indicated a germination rate of 75% or less shall be single-sowed or double-sowed. The soil media shall be well-mixed and appear uniform. The soil media shall be maintained between 5.3 and 5.7 ph. The short-plug containers used to grow the seedlings shall have the following dimensions: length, 3.3 to 4.0 inches; top diameter, 1.5 to 1.7 inches; bottom diameter, 0.8 to 1.2 inches; and volume, 5.0 to 6.0 cubic inches. Growing media and/or germinated seedlings shall receive two (2) treatments of the fungus Rhizopogon mycorrhiza. Seedlings shall be treated with Benlate for the control of brownspot needle blight. Government representatives will visit the nursery to view the seedlings and growing conditions. 1.2.1 Monthly Update A monthly update shall be sent by email to the CO?s Designee. The monthly update shall include treatments, testing, and testing results, by date and seedlot, including: Pre-germination treatments Germination status or status of seedlings, including crop condition and growth Soil media pH tests and results Irrigation water pH tests and results Herbicide applications Herbicide results Fungicide application Mycorrhiza application Receipts for purchase for mycorrhizae Estimate of seedling numbers, noting any decline Evaluation of the insect, disease, cultural, or climatological factors that may affect seedling quality or quantity, and/or cause a 10% or greater decline in the amount of acceptable seedlings grown under this contract. Additionally, on June 1 and October 1: seedling inventory and estimated production 1.2.2 Seedlings Produced The resulting seedlings shall be between 7 and 10 months of age at delivery to Eglin AFB, and shall meet the standards listed in Table 1. Delivered seedlings shall be healthy and disease-free, and shall have a minimum-sized root collar of 0.25 inches and an average needle length of 8 inches. The seedlings shall be extracted from containers and packed in polyurethane-lined cardboard boxes for delivery. There shall contain 250 seedlings per box. Boxes shall be strong enough to allow the boxes to be stacked 5 boxes high without squashing any boxes, when delivered to the Air Force, unloaded, and restacked for transport to the planting site. Table 1. Standards of delivered seedlings. (Based on James P. Barnett et. al. 2002.) Characteristic Standard Not acceptable Needles Length if not top-clipped 8 to 12 inches Less than 4 inches Length if top-clipped 6 to 10 inches Less than 4 inches Fascicles Many present Less than 5 Color Medium green to dark green Yellow or brown Roots Root collar diameter at base of needles 0.25 inches or greater Less than 0.25 inches Color Light brown with white tips Black Mychorrhizae Present (the more the better) Not applicable Evidence of disease No disease present Any disease present Root spiraling None present Any noticeable spiraling Buds Presence Buds present Buds absent Color Brown Yellow or chlorotic Firmness Plug stays intact More than 25% of the plug potting medium is dislodged Moisture Plug is moist Plug feels dry to the POC Pests No competing insects, weeds, or mold. Smells earthy. Competing insects, weeds, or mold. Smells musty. Sonderegger None Present 1.3 Seedling transportation and delivery Seedlings shall be transported, within two days of extraction, in refrigerated vehicles; the refrigerated vehicle shall be kept between 33oF and 40oF. Delivery of seedlings shall be in shipments of 100,000 to 250,000; delivery will be scheduled by Eglin AFB personnel. At least 3 days notification of shipping requirement (number of seedlings and delivery date) will be given to the Contractor. Shipments will be requested during the normal planting season 17 November through 28 February. No more than 7 shipments will be required; the Government will strive to minimize the number of shipments to promote fuel and planting efficiency. Deliveries shall be made during the hours 0630 - 1300, Monday through Saturday, legal Federal holidays excepted, to Jackson Guard, 107 Highway 85 North, Niceville, FL 32578. Seedlings shall be delivered in an 8-wheel trailer, 40-45 feet long with a nose-mounted diesel refrigeration unit, further described in section 1.4 below. 1.4 Refrigerated storage The refrigeration unit must be capable of maintaining the temperature in the trailer between 35? F and 40? F; it shall have be capable of cycling on and off automatically, without manual assistance, to keep the trailer within the desired temperature range. In case of mechanical breakdown, the Contractor will be notified immediately upon the Government?s discovery of the mechanical failure. The Contractor shall inform the POC as to the actions they are taking to remedy the problem. The Contractor shall either repair or replace the trailer within 72 hours. The repair response time shall not exceed 48 hours. The Contractor shall inform the Jackson Guard POC as to what remedy he/she is taking and when the unit will be operational. Should the contractor not provide a replacement or have the unit operational within 72 hours, the Government shall, at its discretion and at the Contractor?s expense, have the unit repaired by a qualified refrigeration technician. The Contractor shall be responsible for all needed maintenance throughout the contract period. The trailer shall be provided from the time of first shipment until the last trees delivered have been planted (between 17 November and 28 February). If needed and at its discretion, the Government shall rent the unit for an additional 30 days from 1 March to 1 April. The Contractor shall be responsible for picking up trailer at end of the contract period. 1.5 Seedling Surplus or Shortage In the event that fewer seedlings are produced than required by this contract, the contractor may be required to obtain the necessary quantity of seedlings that meet the contract standards. If it becomes necessary for the Contactor to purchase seedlings from other sources, payment will be made at the contract price. If seedlings are grown in excess of the requested quantity, the Government reserves the right to purchase the surplus seedlings at the contract price. 1.6 Payment The Contractor may submit an invoice and request payment for each shipment. Payment deductions will be made when less than 95% of the seedlings per box are acceptable, as described in Table 1. Seedling shipments with less than 80% acceptable seedlings per box may be rejected. 2.0 SERVICE DELIVERY SUMMARY The Contractor shall pick up seeds, provide nursery services, and provide delivery and refrigerated storage services, needed to provide healthy and viable longleaf pine seedlings, as called for in section 1.0. The only government-furnished property is the longleaf seed (section 3.0); general/safety clauses are identified in section 4.0. Acceptable seedlings are as described as ?Specified? in Table 1. Unacceptable seedlings shall be those described in the subject table ?Not acceptable.? For the Government to judge a box of tree seedlings as acceptable, at least 95% of the seedlings shall be judged to be as ?specified? in Table 1. Payment deductions will be made when less than 95% of packaged seedlings are acceptable. Seedling shipments with less than 80% acceptable seedlings per box may be rejected. 3.0 GOVERNMENT-FURNISHED PROPERTY The Government shall provide processed seeds at Knud Neilson Co. in Evergreen, Alabama. The Contractor is responsible for coordinating pickup of processed seeds with the Knud Neilson Co. The Contractor is responsible for all loss or damage of the processed seeds from the time of pickup until services required under this contract have received acceptance and final approval. Section 1.1 provides further details. 4.0 GENERAL INFORMATION 4.1 Notice To Contractor ? Public Highways Run Through Air Force Munitions Range Safety Zone Eglin AFB an ammunition test range, and public highways and Air Force roads are occasionally shut down as a precaution. In such a situation, public highway access is normally restricted for short periods, while Air Force roads may be shut down for several hours. 4.2. Notice to Contractor ? Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) in Areas Adjacent to Public Highways and Haul Roads Eglin AFB lands have been used as an ammunition test range since 1935, and unexploded but dangerous ordnance exists in the ground and in trees. No UXO is expected on the public highways the Contractor is expected to use, however, areas adjacent to the highways may contain UXO such as live bombs, missiles, and other ordnance material embedded in trees or soil. Such UXO may pose a danger to person and property, and the Contractor should not attempt to move or otherwise tamper with such material or objects. If report UXO is encountered, the Contractor shall report the object, its description, and location, to the POC. 4.3 Closures for National Security and Military Reasons The Contractor is notified that all or part of Eglin AFB may have restricted access due to national security or other military purposes. 4.4 Hunting and Other Users The Contractor is advised that the reservation is used for non-military uses, including hunting, recreation, and production of fill material (borrow pits). Precautions should be taken to prevent conflicts with hunters or others. 4.5 Health and Safety Requirements The contractor shall be responsible for meeting all federal, state, and local safety requirements on Air Force lands. 4.6 Disposal of Debris, Including Personal Trash All trash, including lunch/snack trash, shall be disposed of properly and immediately; the Contractor shall not wait until the end of the day prior to gathering trash. Dumping, disposing, storing, or littering of any form (garbage, refuse, oil containers, tires, equipment, etc.) are prohibited on the Eglin Reservation. 4.7 Protection of Lands, Vegetation, Steams, Lakes, Ponds, and Reservoirs. The Contractor shall take appropriate actions and precautions to prevent pollution or degradation of lands, vegetation, streams, lakes, ponds, and reservoirs by fuels, oils, other chemicals, silt, sediments, or other harmful materials. The Contractor shall be responsible for any spills that may occur on Air Force lands. 4.8 Protection of Archaeological/Historical Resources Archeological artifacts or historical materials (arrowheads, bottles, turpentine pots) may not be collected on federal property such as Eglin AFB. 4.9 Wildfire Reporting Any wildfire that is observed by the Contractor or his/her employees shall be reported immediately by the quickest method to Jackson Guard Dispatch, telephone +1 (555) 000-0000. 4.10 Citation James P. Barnett, Mark J. Hainds, and George A. Hernandez. 2002. Interim Guidelines for Growing Longleaf Seedlings in Containers, in: Proceedings of Workshops on Growing Longleaf Pine in Containers ?1999 and 2001, USFS General Technical Report SRS-56).