730 Page 482730 SEEDING
730.1DESCRIPTION
This work consists of preparing a seedbed and furnishing and planting seed on disturbed areas, except roadbeds, within the limits of the work.
730.2MATERIALS
A.General: The seed will comply with the requirements of the South Dakota Seed Law. B.Origin Limitations: Grass seed furnished will be the grass species listed in the plans. The Contractor may use one of the grass varieties listed in the plans for the specified grass species or the Contractor may use a different grass variety of the same grass species specified. If the Contractor uses a grass variety listed in the plans for the specified grass species, the grass seed origin limitations will not apply. If the Contractor uses a grass variety not listed in the plans for the specified grass species, the grass seed furnished must originate in South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Colorado, or Wisconsin. Grass seed grown outside this area may be approved after the Contractor has furnished written certification from three seed suppliers confirming seed grown within this area is not readily available. Forb, sedge, rush, shrub, and wildflower seed must originate in the United States or Canada. Forb, sedge, rush, shrub, and wildflower seed grown outside the United States and Canada may be approved after the Contractor has furnished written certification from three seed suppliers confirming seed grown within the two countries is not readily available. C.Seed Testing: Seed will be tested within 9 months prior to planting, exclusive of the calendar month in which the test was completed. Testing will be performed by a State Seed Lab, Commercial Seed Testing Lab, or a registered member of the Society of Commercial Seed Analysts (Registered Seed Technologist). A certified test report will be furnished prior to the start of seeding operations. If the seed is not planted within the 9 month period, the Contractor will have the seed retested for germination, as described above, and a current germination report with the certified test report will be furnished prior to starting seeding operations. The retest will be based on a sample obtained from the seed out of compliance. D.Labeling: Each bag of seed delivered to the project will bear a tag which shows the following information: 1.Name and address of supplier. 2.County and project number for which seed is to be used. 3.Suppliers lot number for each kind of seed in the mixture. 4.Origin (where grown) for each kind of seed. 5.Purity, germination, and other information required by South Dakota Seed Law, for each kind of seed. 730 Page 4836.Pounds of bulk seed of each kind of seed in each bag. 7.Total pounds of bulk seed mixture in each bag. 8.Pounds of pure live seed (PLS) of each kind of seed in each bag. 9.Total pounds of PLS mixture in each bag. 10.Dormant seed and hard seed. When bulk seed is referred to, it is defined as total seed, including PLS, inert matter, crop seed, and weed seed. E.Inoculation of Legumes: Prior to seeding, legumes (alfalfa, clovers, etc.) will be inoculated with fresh culture of the appropriate nitrogen fixing bacteria in accordance with instruction accompanying the inoculant. A certification of the inoculation will be furnished.
730.3CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS
A.General Requirements: Within seasonal limitations, seeding will be done as soon as finish grading and placing topsoil on each section have been completed. Seeding or related work will not be done when the ground is frozen, or the condition of the soil is such that a satisfactory seedbed or uniform seed placement cannot be obtained. Seed will not be sown, when the wind interferes with uniform seed application, or on areas under water. Slopes will be worked longitudinally on contour, during the preparation of areas, drilling, and after seeding. Fertilizing and mulching will be provided as specified in Section 731 and Section 732. The Engineer may approve necessary adjustments in the requirements outlined to obtain the most satisfactory results under varying conditions. B.Seasonal Limitations: Permanent seeding will not be done between June 1 and August 1, without written authorization from the Region Engineer. C.Application Rate: The seed mixture will be applied at the plan specified rate of pounds of PLS per acre. If a retest of the seed mixture shows a reduction in PLS, adjustment of the seed mixture rate will not be made. Measurement will be reduced as set forth in Section 730.4 . The Contractor will be required to calibrate the drill or hydro seeder on each project. Calibration runs may be performed on areas to be seeded. D.Cover Crop Seeding: When specified in the plans or directed by the Engineer, cover crop will be seeded. Exception to the cover crop seeding may include areas where curb and gutter will be placed and areas as determined by the Engineer. 730 Page 484Cover crop seed will consist of 56 pounds of oats, spring wheat, or winter wheat (minimum 75% PLS) per acre. Cover crop seeding may be done at any time when the soil and weather conditions are suitable, as determined by the Engineer. Oats or spring wheat will be used April through July and winter wheat will be used August through November. E.Equipment and Methods: 1.Seedbed Preparation: The Contractor will work areas to be seeded to a depth of approximately 3 inches. The Contractor will take every effort to obtain this depth on the first pass with tillage equipment. The Contractor will remove and dispose of logs, stumps, brush, weeds, cobbles, and other foreign material which interferes with the proper operation of drills and other implements. After the initial seedbed preparation, the Contractor will prepare seedbeds according to the type of grass seed mixture to be planted. a.Turf Grass Seed Mixtures: The Contractor will remove rocks larger than 3/4 inch. The Contractor will construct the surface to be seeded to the required cross section. The Contractor will shape the surface to remove mounds and low spots to provide a smooth even surface to match grade and cross section as shown in the plans. After seeding and fertilizing, the seedbed will be rolled or otherwise worked by a method approved by the Engineer to firm the seedbed and break up lumps and clods so they are no larger than 3/4 inch in size. b.All Other Grass Seed Mixtures: Lumps and clods exposed by the initial pass of tillage equipment over 3 inches in diameter will be broken up. The implement used will be a tool carrier with rigid shanks with sweeps or chisels, or a heavy duty disk as appropriate to the conditions. The implement will have positive means of controlling depth of penetration. The number of passes required to break up lumps and clods will be kept to a minimum. Working the soil to a fine pulverized condition will be avoided. The final prepared seedbed will be left in a roughened condition consisting mainly of lumps 2 to 3 inches in diameter, for maximum resistance to erosion. After seedbed preparation has been completed, the Contractor will pick up and dispose of all loose stones and boulders having a vertical projection of 3 inches or more above the soil surface. 2.Reseeding of Previously Seeded Areas: Existing vegetation and cover crop will be preserved for mulch. The seed will be drilled directly into existing cover if possible, or by mowing and disking to permit penetration of drill openers and placement of seed to the specified depth. 3.Drilling: The specified seed mixture will be uniformly drilled using a press drill equipped with individually mounted, adjustable, spring loaded, double disk furrow openers fitted with depth control bands or drums. The depth control bands or drums will be of a size to provide a final planting depth of 1/4 to 1/2 inch behind the press wheel. 730 Page 485The press drill will be mounted on rear press wheels, which carry a major portion of the weight of the drill, and will have no weight carrying wheels at the ends of the seedbox. The press wheels will be mounted independently of the furrow openers. A press wheel will follow directly behind each opener to compact the soil over the drill row. Seeding may be done with drills other than press drills provided they are equipped with baffles, partitions, agitators, or augers which keep the seed distributed throughout the seed box. They must also have packer wheels which follow directly behind double disk furrow openers and provide compaction of the seeded drill rows similar to the compaction obtained by a press drill. No-till drills will be allowed for seeding into cover crop or existing vegetation as long as the seed is planted to the required depth. The seedbox will be equipped with positive feed mechanisms which will accurately meter the seed, and agitators which will prevent bridging in the seedbox and keep the seed uniformly mixed during drilling. The drill will conform to the following: Drill Width Maximums: a.Single units.................................................................................................. 10 feet b.Flex coupled side by side units ................................................................... 16 feet (maximum two 8 foot members) c.Max. drill row (openers) spacing ............................................................... 8 inches Each drill will be equipped with a metering device which will measure the area covered by the drill. Each drill will be equipped with fabricated baffles or partitions mounted a maximum of 2 foot on centers and flush with the top of the seed box and extending downward to within 4 inches of the bottom of the seed box. On areas where a press drill cannot be operated satisfactorily, hydraulic, cyclone or knapsack hand operated, or other broadcast type seeders may be used. The Contractor will rake or drag (incorporate) all seed broadcast within the top 1/4 to 1/2 inch of topsoil. The Engineer may waive this requirement when raking or dragging is deemed, in the Engineer’s discretion, not feasible by conventional methods. 4.Hydroseeding: The equipment will be designed specifically for hydroseeding. The nozzle will be adaptable to hydraulic seeding requirements. Storage tanks will have a means of estimating the volume used or remaining in the tank. F.Care during Construction and Final Inspection: Dirt ridges which result from seeding operations or from traffic will be smoothed so they will not interfere with future mowing operations. Following completion of seeding operations, foot, vehicular, or equipment traffic over the seeded area will be avoided. Areas damaged from such traffic will be reworked and reseeded. 730 Page 486Before the Acceptance of Field Work is made, any area on which the original seed has been lost or displaced will be reseeded. G.Excluded Areas: Certain areas outside the right-of-way widths which are devoted to cultivation, and undisturbed areas within the right-of-way widths which have a good growth of grass may be excluded from seeding operations.
730.4METHOD OF MEASUREMENT
Permanent seed will be measured to the nearest pound of PLS furnished and planted. Unauthorized increases in the specified rate of seeding will not be measured for payment. Seed required for calibration of the drill will be measured. Reseeding of areas damaged from causes beyond the control of the Contractor will be measured and added to the original quantities used. The weight of PLS is computed by multiplying the purity, times the sum of the germination and dormant seed value, times the weight of bulk seed applied. The purity, dormant seed, and germination values will be as shown on the bag tag. If the seed has been retested based on Section 730.2 C, the retested value will be used in determining PLS. Cover crop seeding will be measured per bushel. For purposes of measurement, one bushel of cover crop seed will be considered to be 56 pounds of bulk seed regardless of whether oats, spring wheat, or winter wheat is used.
730.5BASIS OF PAYMENT
Pure live seed will be paid for at the contract unit price per pound of permanent seed. Payment will be full compensation for the preparation of the seedbed, labor, tools, equipment, inoculant and its application, and incidentals necessary. Cover crop seeding will be paid for at the contract unit price per bushel. Payment will be full compensation for the preparation of the seedbed, labor, tools, equipment, inoculant and its application, and incidentals necessary. 731 Page 487731 FERTILIZING
731.1DESCRIPTION
This work consists of furnishing and applying fertilizer material on areas to be seeded or sodded.
731.2MATERIALS
A.Requirements : Fertilizer will be a dry standard commercial product conforming to the South Dakota Fertilizer Law and subsequent amendments or revisions. Each brand and grade of fertilizer must be registered with the State Department of Agriculture. Each bag or container will clearly show the net weight of the contents, the name and address of the manufacturer, the brand and grade, the guaranteed analysis of the contents showing the minimum percentages of total nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and water-soluble potash available, in that order. B.Condition: Fertilizer will be in a condition which permits proper distribution. C.Testing: Testing of fertilizer will not be required. Before fertilizer is approved for use, the Contractor will submit a certified statement from the manufacturer stating that the fertilizer is registered for sale in South Dakota and complies with the South Dakota Fertilizer Law. The certified statement will include the name of the Contractor, the project number, the county, and all information that appears on the containers, as listed in Section 731.2 A.
731.3CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS
A.Application: Fertilizer will be applied not more than 48 hours prior to seeding. Fertilizer will be applied by one of the following methods: 1.With a fertilizer attachment on the drill, which will place the fertilizer in a band on or near the drill row behind the openers during the drilling operations (preferred method). 2.By drilling in with an approved drill prior to seeding. 3.By spreading the fertilizer uniformly over the areas to be seeded prior to or during seedbed preparation (before final pass). This method will not be acceptable when seedbed preparation is not required. 4.Where the seed is sown by a hydraulic seeder, the required amount of fertilizer may be placed in the tank, mixed with the water and the seed, and applied in the seeding operation. 5.By hand operated broadcaster following sod installation. 6.By equipment mounted broadcast spreaders on slopes flatter than 6:1. B.Cleanup: The Contractor will sweep all fertilizer misplaced on adjacent pavement onto the seedbed. The Contractor will remove and dispose of all logs, stumps, brush and other foreign material exposed during fertilizer application including rocks larger than 3/4 inch in areas to