How to make your own trees.

[WillemD]

Here's a guideline to make your own trees (for indoor use).

You take a piece of electricity wire (35mm²).
You remove the red thing and keep 8cm of it.

Then you take some wires:
[img=http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/9971/img1853l.jpg]

You twist them several times to keep the strength:
[img=http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/8642/img1856b.jpg]

You separate them another time and twist it again:
[img=http://img200.imageshack.us/img200/4651/img1857al.jpg]

You make loops in it:
[img=http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/5559/img1858sx.jpg]
[img=http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/4026/img1859jq.jpg]

You make them on each side and continue until you're of out wire.
[img=http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/6425/img1860l.jpg]

It should look like this then:
[img=http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/943/img1861z.jpg]


I can continue this if you want

 

[WillemD]

The tree above is my second one.

This is the result of the first one:

[img=http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/2237/img1851w.jpg]
Still have to add the "leaves" off course

 

[Rhinochugger]

Now I know why I opted for garden railways.

I just don't have the patience for things even half as good as this.

The beauty of the garden is that the scenic stuff's already in place

Ok, so a few leaves fall off around this time of year - but is it a real problem? Hoovering up leaves is a bit easier than making trees but I takes me hat off to them that does :applause: :applause:

 

[Gizzy]

Tree-mendous....

 

[mike]

i think they will be ideal , on a rised garden railway, such as mine, were its impossable to grow real trees

 

[annieshalt]

:timeout: failing that mike you can be realy lazy like me and buy some from evil/bay.
not quite to scale but i think they look good, (rule 8).

 

[mikeyh]

An even easier way is to take cuttings from bushes, shrubs etc .Cut them off about 25-30 cms and then add your foliage to the bare wood.

mikey

 

[WillemD]

annieshalt - 16/11/2009 6:36 PM

:timeout: failing that mike you can be realy lazy like me and buy some from evil/bay.
not quite to scale but i think they look good, (rule 8).

They're a bit too low indeed, but they can be used well as trees who were planted only a year ago or something..

 

[owlpool]

very impressive
I might branch out and try some myself

 

[Steve]

I will take a leaf out of your book on this there great

 

[stevedenver]

should make stringing xmas lights a breeze

 

[trammayo]

I have had a go at that with Leylandi cuttings. Drilled a piece of dowel (20mm x 450mm) and glued suitable pieces in. The cuttings have now gone brown and dry so I am going to paint them. If I am not ashamed of result I'll post a pic.

 

[mikeyh]

Even with a garden railway it is sometimes worth making your own trees.. conifers are great and the mainstay of any garden layout, but if you want a weeping willow tree alongside a river, or an oak tree in a field you have to make your own. Either the method described by Mike or elementary bonzai, where the tap root is cut to miniaturise the tree (takes a long time though), can add a lot to the realism of your layout (if thats what you want of course!)

Mikey

 

[trammayo]

Finally got round to painting my tree. It doesn't look too bad (in failing light) but needs the trunk painting an appropiate colour. This is based on a piece of dowel (60cm long), tapered at one end (top) and drilled at approx 45 degrees so that branches will point uphill (not all conifer types do) and is made from Leylandi cuttings, glued with PVA and left to dry for six months. Painted with Holts Duplicolor.

 

[trammayo]

I have "planted" a couple of trees, that I made,in (or on?) my trailer layout with a view to making things more interesting. I made the roots out of pieces of soft iron wire bent at near right-angles and fixed to the tree trunk using masking tape both for binding them in position and for bulking out the roots. The tape was then painted over with PVA and dusted with fine sawdust to give texture (bark). So that takes care of my pine tree.

I decided to try other types - particularly the type of tree where the branches grow upwards rather than outwards. Two or three Leyladii clippings were fastened together using fine steel wire to secure them, then covered in masking tapewith roots added if required. I found that, if I tore the tape down its length I could "feather" the edges to allow an almost invisible transition in the layers of tape (like repairing damaged wallpaper). I brushed the outer edges of the Leylandii with PVA and then dipped in coarse sawdust. Once dry, the whole lot was sprayed and then parts of the branches were touched in with brown paint.

The third type of tree was the old bottle brush variety - clipped to shape, painted and dipped in sawdust (then painted again). Masking tape was used for the trunk and roots could be added if required. I've used one on the "mountain top" but they are really more suited to garden topiary so will compliment a cottage better I think.

Mick