Only the trees that fully show need to be great trees. Those behind can be of lesser quality.
BACKGROUND TREES
for your Railway or Railroad
There is no point having showpiece trees where you need a mass such as a forest. Therefore here are some ideas for making your own model trees. Quick and simple methods to make your own background trees. Regrettably, most methods are only suitable for the smaller scales.
Making a model conifer tree
A simple method to make a model conifer tree is to pick some buddleia flower heads once they have bloomed. (You'll probably get in trouble if you try it sooner!) But leave it too late and they'll go to seed.
Don't forget that you will need to 'cook' them to kill the bugs and micro-organisms.
Then steep them in a warm water/pva glue mix (4/1) for around a half hour.
Upon removal, roll them in a relevant flock.
And lo, there is a reasonable background conifer tree. Very useful if you need a forest!
Cost: Several trees to the pound or dollar.
Buddleia is also known as Butterfly Bush and was named after Reverend Adam Buddle who was a botanist and a rector in Essex, England.
Trees from Hydrangeas
In order to protect next years buds from the frost, do not dead head until the spring.
Strip the petals, and then proceed as above.
Cost: Several trees to the pound or dollar.
There are several varieties of Hydrangea and although most are grown as shrubs, some are grown as small trees. Whether the flowers are blue or pink depends upon the acidity of the soil. They are also know as Lacecap, Mop Head or Oak Leaf.
If this all seems like too much effort you could try a site with which we have some affiliation Forest Fillers who try to stock the better end of the mass market in trees, as well as some of our own generic trees, which you may also find at shows on our stand.
If you see us at a show you may also like to consider our BonusBoxes
