Vegetation, plants, green stuff for dioramas

1
March 1, 2025
from left to right: Jungle Plants Set 2 (Reality in Scale), leftover of a door wreath, aquaristique-product; yes, you are right - I'd left the ruler ...
2
March 1, 2025
homemade ground litter - a fortnight drinking tea (peppermint, anise, fennel, caraway seeds).
Drying the tea bags, then crumble the content.
3
March 1, 2025
My wife loves door wreaths. Me too ... Diameter is about 27 cm/10,6 inches: to take a scissor or to buy a new one, that's the question. I think there are some little plants which look more interesting in my next jungle diorama 🙂
4
March 3, 2025
Plastic fake plants - I've found it in the household goods store. Recoloured, used as a background plant for a jungle scene.
5
March 3, 2025
Size, colour, form, prize/quality were a criterion. Tree or shrub?
An idea how to use, of course.
6
March 3, 2025
... found again in my stash. Now waiting to get airbrushed. I think this is aka "Meerschaum" ("Seemoos"), "Seafoam" (lat. Teloxys aristata). Used for hedgerows, bushes and building trees (e.g. modelrailroading, nativity scene construction, architectural models).
If you like to raise your own plants (for drying) -> cf. buntbahn.de/viewtopic.php?t=13474
7
March 8, 2025
Bamboo - part 1. Inspired by Rick Lawler - cf. his videos/my Project: Vegetation, plants, green stuff for dioramas ...
8
March 14, 2025
Bamboo - part 2.
Doing the leaves. I’m using a scalpel or a special scissor for paper cut.
9
March 15, 2025
The alternative: Bamboo trees (RT-Diorama 35446, 1:35)
10
March 16, 2025
the leaves (= green paper) have to be coloured.
11
March 22, 2025
Every tropical scene needs a palm tree ...
12
March 18, 2025
Palmtrees are very popular for building dioramas, especially in the tropics and subtropics. There are 2.600 recent species worldwide. A palm tree = a good choice! Pacific scenes, Northern Africa, Vietnam.
13
March 21, 2025
How to ... (a small selection)
Rick Lawler: Youtube Video (10.3.3035)
WorkshopWorlds: Youtube Video (10.2.2025)
Francesco Ventrice:
Youtube Video (18.3.2025)
Youtube Video (18.3.2025)
Pedro Amor: Youtube Video (18.3.2025)
14
March 18, 2025
DIY - pros and cons (only for me):
Pros: cheap materials (paper, wood, jute twine), suitable to my requirements (size, form), craftfun;
Cons: time consuming, not so detailed as professional products (e.g. photoetched, 3D printed or lasered plant parts);
15
March 21, 2025
Palmtree with photoetched palm fronds:
Night Shift (Martin Kovac): "Monkey Business" - Saipan 1944 Diorama
Youtube Video (21.3.2025)
(palmtree tutorial from: 8‘34‘‘)

Palm fronds for camouflage: taken from Border Models # BT023 -
Camouflage with plants - the topic for next weekend
16
March 28, 2025
Camouflaged with photoetched palmbranches.
17
March 28, 2025
... and the cheap variant of paper (120g/m², colour "honey"). Time requirement about 10'. Coloured with Japanese blue-green (ao midori iro, AK).
18
March 29, 2025
Materials: paper, scissors for paper cutting, colour pen (AK). Now I'm experimenting with washes. The branch can be bend over a rounding (e.g. pen).
19
March 30, 2025
Photoetched or paper? Hope to see you next weekend ... weeds! Sorry: Grasses!
20
March 26, 2025
If you want a camouflage for your vehicles you can use colours, camouflage netting (hessian net), but also branches and twigs. Some people are looking in their garden or in the woods to find suitable plants.
But there are also very nice convenience products, very detailled branches. And there may be no problem with preservation.
If you are interested, please look for: e.g. Mantis Miniatures or RT-Diorama.
21
March 26, 2025
Two tutorials can be helpful (only my choice):
-> Tree Branch Camouflage for Armor Models and Dioramas (Night shift): Youtube Video (28.3.2025)
-> How to make some extra foliage camouflage for military vehicles ((Hamilkar Barkas):
Youtube Video (dto)
22
April 2, 2025
There were never so much professional products as today, what means: there are a lot of excellent products: new e.g. Weeds II by Kamizukuri (#A-25-T). But the grasses in the photo are homemade from paper (80 g/m²) ...
23
April 2, 2025
... time consuming, but craft fun and – I think very significant – individual solutions are easily possible . The suggestion comes from Thai modeller Kreangkrai Paojinda, cf. AK Interactive S.L. (Ed.): Japanese Armor in World War 2. 2022, p. 134f.
cf. modellversium.de/tip..em-alltag/8141-.html
24
April 2, 2025
It’s an easy way to get a plant which may be located in the subtropics and tropics.
The plant may be a kind of grasses, but it may also be a sisal hemp or a bromeliad, growing on tropical trees as a parasitic plant. Also growing on dead wood.
25
April 2, 2025
My alternative: cut a round tounge and cut then zigzag. The paper (120 g/m²) is to thick. You have to cut the stem or to "dig" it in.
26
April 2, 2025
How realistic should plants be?
What I will give a try: How to make easy tall grass bushes (TheTerrainTutor)
Youtube Video (2.4.2025)
27
April 8, 2025
Today was harvest time (Küchenlorbeer, bay laurel). We'll see in a few days what will happen. The plan: Cutting, drying, plastinating, colouring and modelling. Maybe it will be a failure ... learning by doing ... trial and error.
To the method cf. Vallejo, 2019, p. 70f -> Important indication: by using oleander (cf. p.70): all parts of the plant are toxic!!!
The same applies to Kirschlorbeer/ cherry laurel (prunus laurocerasus). The pictured (cf. p.70) ficus benjamini (Birkenfeige/weeping fig) may be problematic for allergy sufferers (latex, plant sap). Please, find out about the plant you will use.
28
April 9, 2025
1st test: Küchenlorbeer, bay laurel (laurus nobilis) after 12 hrs; left: untreated; middle and right: two coats of matt varnish (acrylic);
Problem: leaf veins are not parallel to the cutting lines
Advantage: the coating should impede the scent of the essential oils
If not: Possible remedy – repeat the procedure
Next tests may be using ammo Plasticator (thin/ thick)
29
April 11, 2025
Above: Küchenlorbeer (bay laurel, laurier, laurel de bahía, alloro, laur laurowy)
Left to right: #1 matt varnish (2x) + acrylic colour (Revell) - #2 Acrylic Plasticator, thick (Ammo) -> glossy #3 Acrylic Plasticator, thin (Ammo) -> glossy
Tip: Cut the leaves (not drying them in the sun, please) - then drying them in an interior (about 12 hrs), before cutting the branches etc.
More to come …
30
April 11, 2025
Coloured with Revell #39 as a basic - next will be setting the accents: light green, yellow, brown tips of the branches ... washes, oils, filters ... as you like ...
May be the branches will be used for a "palma bottiglia".
31
April 12, 2025
The first result: the prototype of a barrel palm. Also known as bottle palm; described for the first time in 1942
32
April 12, 2025
time requirement: about 2 1/2 - 3 hours 🙁
cost estimated: less than 1€ 🙂
craft fun: priceless 🙂
33
April 15, 2025
Prepairing a test area for scattering material to build groundwork on brown soil (raw siena). Tea bag mixture and herbs.
more to come ...
34
April 16, 2025
Dried herbs lose their essential oils and become unusable for cooking purpose. Just right for using on a diorama to represent small parts of vegetation. For example „Bella Italia“, an Italian mixture (including rosemary, basil, sage) which became a shelf warmer in my kitchen (right). As always a question of shape, size and scale. Shred with mortar and pestle or an old electric coffee grinder (tip from an US logging model railroader), perhaps you get a cheap one at a flea market.
35
April 17, 2025
Test fields: #1 1/1 herbal tea mixture (brownish); #2 mixture of herbal tea (2/3) and dried herbs (1/3); #3 the same ingredients though half and half; #4 1/3 herbal tea and 2/3 dried herbs (greenish)
Result: Differences are less noticeable than expected.
Conclusion: I’ll use the mixture for my next dioramas. But it should be varigated in colour and other „ingredients“ – like little stones or plant parts – are to be added to.
36
April 17, 2025
The use of herbs is a good practice for a longer time and now
listed in: Vallejo,F., 2019, p.28.
- cf. also the diorama “Semper Fi…” (1:72) of Stefan Szymanski (2010)
modellversium.de/gal..d=4456&origin=mb (14.4.2025)
37
April 17, 2025
Important NOTE using organic materials:
To prevent natural processes (e.g. mold formation) and other influences: the herbs must be absolutely dry and sterile. They shall be protected from humidity by varnish, glue and colours.
38
April 21, 2025
Temporarily this is the last herbal subject:
Herbs in the garden lignify over the years. They can be used as interresting trunks for bushes and trees. For example rosemary. Also you can use sage and thyme.
To be continued ... when I will graft branches.
Next topic: banana plants ...
39
April 18, 2025
next topic: sweet banana ... prototype of my homemade banana plant.
Suitable for jungle scenes for example in the Pacific theatre (ww2), Vietnam or other jungle regions.
40
April 18, 2025
I've tested a new wire which is normally used to tie up vines. It is covered with waxed paper. I think it is ideal for modelling. By the way ... viticulture ... the roots of the vines will make interresting trees in 1:35 ...
what is still to be shown.
41
April 23, 2025
experimenting with banana stems (before colouring)
42
April 23, 2025
My favorite: The stem of the banana plant (height: 90mm) is made of green paper (120g/m²) and coloured:
left -> dark green + acrylic plasticator, thick (Ammo); an acrylic varnish (water soluble) should work too.
right -> + yellow and leafy green.
A light green wash ist still missing. Also you can do drybrushing with brown (lignified and dead plant parts), yellow and different greens; the paper is now sufficiently hardened.
43
April 24, 2025
To build my favorite - I used these four steps. Step #5: I bend over the incised strips.
Then plasticating, colouring (different layers), washing, drybrushing ...
You can vary all sizes and the cuts. Please use your imagination and documentation -> real plants, photos, visit in a botanical garden. Maybe a Sunday outing with family 🙂
44
April 20, 2025
How to simulate tropical wood ground with dead wood.
There are no seasons so we can have blossoms, leaves (green and dead), fruits and dead wood at the same plant. Trees have no annual rings. So I took a piece of dead vine to build the dead wood which a bromelia is living on it.

Коментари

35 1 March, 14:27

gorby
I like the idea for ground litter.

1 March, 15:30

Ben M
👁️👁️

8 March, 14:44

Spanjaard
very interesting!

14 March, 21:41

Thomas E. Автор
Thank you for your interest. Vegetation? Two of my dioramas were located in the Tundra of Lappland (Aerosan) and in the Sahara (SAS, LRDG). Now, that should change. I think about scenes in Vietnam, the finnish Taiga: trees 🙁 ... I've much to learn 🙂

15 March, 07:52

Ben M
How did you make the joints on the bamboo?

15 March, 11:19

Thomas E. Автор
I use floral wire (0,35 mm), bend it around the skewer and encase it with a drop of wood glue by my finger. Basic Colour is dark green
brightened with yellow.

1 15 March, 11:33

Nicolas
👀

16 March, 10:30

Thomas E. Автор
Thanks for watching 🙂 - tomorrow there'll be new stuff, a little bit ...

21 March, 14:30

Thomas E. Автор
Thank you Daniele and all the others - next weekend I'll look to have some informations about camouflage with branches and so.

25 March, 17:10

Villiers de Vos
Very nice work.

25 March, 17:28

Rui S
Nice work, indeed 👍

28 March, 15:41

Thomas E. Автор
@Villiers and Rui: Thank you! Very motivating. Also I like the likes. Thanks. 🙂
Next weekend a new theme is planned: weeds. My long term aim: to build a diorama of the training ground of Chiba Tank School (and the vegetation) to present Japanese tanks.

29 March, 07:58

Neuling
Nice battle of flowers .. 🙂

29 March, 09:38

Guy Rump
Nice work. 👍

29 March, 09:58

Thomas E. Автор
Thank you, very kind and motivating. Also I'm thinking about plastinating real plants ...

29 March, 15:45

Thomas E. Автор
... and spring is harvest time!

30 March, 15:24

Thomas E. Автор
Thank you to Franck and the others. 🙂

5 April, 05:58

Michael Kohl
Interesting collection.
Long staple moss serves well for little plants or in small scales glued to wire as branches for needle trees.

17 April, 07:59

Thomas E. Автор
Thank you all!
@ Michael Kohl - special thanks to your hint. I'll try to get some of this plants after the holidays.

17 April, 12:45

Michael Kohl
When I am outdoor I scan plants for parts that can be used for various purposes. Useful are particularly those that can be broken down into little units. Such a plant I could use i. e. to create wheat for my harvester-vignette.
Same for pigments. Dusty areas often have very fine pigments that can be easily sieved through a nylon stocking your wife/girlfriend will surly happily supply to you for this purpose.

1 17 April, 14:07

Thomas E. Автор
Very interresting. How many denier do you recommend? I use a marmelade jar to divide sands and silts. Also I'm thinking about a project about diorama and soils ... may be the next project ... 🙂

17 April, 14:42

gorby
If you're thinking of using real soil I've already done a few experiments:
Using real soil for dioramas | Album by gorby

1 17 April, 15:25

Thomas E. Автор
Thanks for sharing!!!

1 17 April, 15:30

Patrick Brun
Super! Danke an T. E, für den Pflanzenbericht im Modellversium und den Link nach hier.

1 18 April, 16:56

Thomas E. Автор
Vielen Dank! Freut mich sehr! 🙂

18 April, 17:12

Thomas E. Автор
Thanks - to Desert Marlin, Mattias Decommere and all I cannot identify.

21 April, 06:19

gorby
Those scenic mats look effective, although for me it goes against the grain buying something when I could have a go at making it. I suspect the same is true of you.

1 24 April, 13:53

Rui S
I completely agree.

24 April, 15:07

Thomas E. Автор
Let me answer in German: Jein. (you have no word in English? Yes and no. Maybe: Yo?) First you are right. I spend my money on models not on scenics. The scenic mat was more expensive as the kits on it. Hmh. It was a special prize so I'd bought it, because I think it is important to show what I can do as a hobbyist in relation to products you can buy. At the end every modeller has to decide for what is worth to buy. But you also have seen my position right: I'm thinking of young modellers and all those modellers who have to hold on to their money. But I know also people who are earning their money by designing, building and trading things we need for our hobby (and things we don't need - you and me). And there are also some people who have money and no time. They won't understand us. A few days ago I've seen an auction - a Vietnam diorama - a street estimated two M48s long (max) - two palm trees, eight banana plants, a ricefield (background, cut): more than 1.200€. Hmh. Not my league, not my intention. A palm tree 50 €, my work is for free . Today I read an article about a Vietnam diorama - all plants were bought. No jungle, a tank in a plant bed was my first thought - not my intention. But the modeller was happy. And I am happy to say based on Neil Young: we are modelling in a free world. Hope you can agree and my words would be halfway understandable.

1 24 April, 15:27

Rui S
Yap. For me the fun is "do it your self" and cheaper. Not so much fun, if you buy everything already done. It takes more time, that's for sure but I like to improvise, if you get my drift 😉

1 24 April, 15:55

gorby
I suppose that is true Thomas, basically 'each to there own'. Like Rui, I find much more satisfaction in attempting to recreate items rather than buy them. Even if some of those things are relatively inexpensive, I see it as mental exercise trying to work out how it would be possible to do such things.
Some people learn to speak another language to ward off dementia, I just try to figure out how to make small stuff. 😄

24 April, 16:08

Spanjaard
too late to ward off being cracy my dear gorby, but please do not change 😉
jokes aside, I fully agree, although i am certainly guilty of falling in the trap of aftermarket a lot more often than I should!

1 24 April, 16:35

gorby
😄 😄 😄

24 April, 16:36

Thomas E. Автор
I would like to thank you all for your great interest.

24 April, 16:42

Spanjaard
it is us who should thank you for the great tutorial 🙂

24 April, 16:59

Neuling
Yes.

24 April, 17:36