Gardening Services for U.S. Embassy Tallinn

Description: The purpose of this contract is to obtain gardening services for real property owned or managed by the U.S. Government at Tallinn, Estonia. The performance period of this contract is from the start date in the Notice to Proceed and continuing for 12 months, with three (3), one-year options to renew. 1.5. PRUNING AND MAINTENANCE 1.5.1 The Contractor shall maintain trees, shrubs, hedges, bushes, vines, ground cover and flowers and add support/binding to trees/bushes/branches in order to help them stand straight. 1.5.2 The Contractor shall prepare a written schedule, as part of the Grounds Maintenance Plan, showing the method, frequencies, and timeframe of pruning. The Contractor shall prune according to the schedule and instructions in the Grounds Maintenance Plan to ensure that proper shape of all trees, hedges and shrubs is maintained at all times and all heavy pruning is accomplished during the proper season according to best horticultural practice. 1.5.3 The Contractor shall prune all shrubs, vines, bushes, ground cover, and trees to: * direct and encourage plant growth in directions desired, * remove dead and unsightly growth and winter damaged branches * maintain a neat and attractive appearance and proper shape 1.5.4 The Contractor shall use wound dressing or grafting wax where necessary after removing winter-damaged branches/shrubs. 1.5.5. At no additional cost to the Government, the Contractor shall replace any tree, bush or shrub that is killed or rendered unusable for its intended purpose through negligent or irresponsible practices that are attributable to the Contractor. 1.6. MAINTENANCE OF PLANTING AREAS The Contractor shall maintain and tidy up planting areas according to the Grounds Maintenance Plan: * release the iris bulbs from under the mulch in the spring and cover them with mulch again in late fall. * cut down/remove the wilted flowers/dried stems of the tulips, narcissus, irises and crocuses after blooming. * cut/remove wilted flowers/dried stems and unsightly branches from the perennial planting area. * tidy up the rhododendron and rose beds; remove dried leaves and stems. * clean all planting areas around the house of plant remains. * if necessary, divide perennial flower bushes * clean the vegetable beds of plant remains in the fall season 1.7. WEEDING. The Contractor shall weed the perennial and seasonal flowerbeds, under the decorative bushes/hedges and fruit trees/berry bushes in the garden on a continuous basis to prevent the growth of weeds. 1.8. RAKING LEAVES. The Contractor shall rake leaves from the base of trees and bushes, compost as much as possible and remove leaves and branches with signs of disease from premises. 1.9. RECYCLED MATERIALS. The Contractor shall promote recycled uses for lawn and tree debris in meeting other gardening needs, composting as much yard waste as possible. 1.10. REMOVAL OF DEBRIS. The Contractor shall remove foreign material, cuttings, grass, leaves, bark, limbs, dead vegetation, and trash directly resulting from the Contractor's maintained areas including walkways, stairways and curbs within or adjacent to the area. The Contractor shall remove all debris and equipment from the work site before the end of each workday. Debris removal shall prevent unsightly accumulation. The Contractor shall promptly remove collected debris to an authorized disposal site. The Contractor is responsible for all expenses incurred in the collection and disposal of debris. 1.11. WATERING 1.11.1. The Contractor shall water, planted flowers, seasonal container flowers, shrubs decorative, and fruit trees and bushes to provide for moisture penetration to a depth of 7 centimeters. If natural precipitation is sufficient to fulfill this requirement, the Contractor may request the COR's permission to suspend watering to avoid too much water in the soil. 1.11.2. The method, frequencies, and dates of watering shall be established in the Grounds Maintenance Plan. The watering schedule shall take into account the kinds of vegetation, local soil conditions, and the seasonal variations in plant moisture requirements. 1.11.3. The Contractor shall provide all hoses, portable sprinklers, and other similar irrigation equipment. 1.11.4. The Government shall furnish the supply of water. 1.12. FERTILIZING The Contractor shall use fertilizers both in the fruit and berry garden and in the flower planting areas in order to enhance the growth of the plants. Targeted seasonal fertilizers shall be used both in the spring and fall season. 1.13 PEST AND DISEASE CONTROL. The Contractor shall maintain a program for controlling pests and plant disease so as to maintain flowers, shrubs, vines, trees, and other planted areas in a healthy and vigorous condition. Plant pesticides can be used for spraying roses, decorative trees and plants, berry bushes and fruit trees as per requirement. The Contractor shall obtain prior approval of the COR for all pesticides. 1.14. HAZARDOUS AND TOXIC SUBSTANCES. It is the Contractor's responsibility to ensure the safe handling, application, removal and environmentally sound disposal of all hazardous or potentially hazardous fertilizers, weed killers, and pest control products utilized in this requirement. 1.15. LOCATION FOR GARDENING SERVICES All standard services are to be delivered on regular Post working days. Location Address____ Ambassador's Residence (CMR) TBD