Creating the effect!
Trees and bushes can really make a layout come alive, but it does take some care in getting it right.I find it is better to gradually build up this greenery over time and to think about where an how it 'grows'.
What materials to use?
There have been many articles and even books over the years covering tree making and they are a good starting point. For Meifford, I predominently use two methods -
- Wire armatures, with a postiche type of foliage, for bigger trees
- Sea Foam (Zeechium), on its own or with an armature for bushes and small trees
The image below shows a combination of the two methods, on the upper line from Llanfillyn. Here there are a number of trees and bushes that are close to and help to disguise the track.
Click on the images to enlarge ...
What sort of trees would be found in the location, how would they grow and how many would you expect to see? Open scrubby land or moors are moree likely to have small to medium bushes and just a few small weather affected trees. Some protected areas, will be ok for bigger and more lush trees, closer together. Basically, research the type of location where your railway runs through!
The second image shows a small tree made from several small sprigs of sea foam, plus bushes made from cut down and shaped sea foam 'branches'. The foliage is a medium green coarse foam foliage sprinkled on after branches ahve been dotted with PVA adnesive.
Clumps of larger foliage around the base of the trees etc. also help the illusion