Anyone give me a cheap conifer ideas?

http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=1&TOPIC_ID=26674

Here's a thread on making conifers. I use about the same method for deciduos trees except I glue a chunk of lichen to the top of the skewer and cover that with ground foam.

I can give you a few ideas, based on what I've done on my current and previous layouts, which have been pretty low-cost.  Maybe you'll find them useful.  First of all, I'd recommend Woodland Scenics foliage, which comes in a mat form.  As the package instructions recommend, I cut out a small section, stretch it into a loose shape and glue it to my "tree."  I use Elmer's white glue.  The foliage mats come in several shades of green (representing spring, late summer) and yellow and orange fall foliage.  There is also a conifer color, a dark blue-green. 

Now, for tree trunks, I use twigs and clippings from woody shrubs.  I don't know where you live, but sagebrush is an excellent source of woody model tree material, especially if you can find a dead plant.  Also, before you dispose of your Christmas tree, look it over for woody material...unlikely as it sounds, I've found Christmas tree branches, especially close to the trunk, that make great deciduous trees trunk and branch structures!

 Conifer trunks and branches require some more work.  You may find some naturally straight, tapered woody plant material.  Or, wooden chopsticks can be whittled or sanded into shape, the trunk scored with a razor saw or a rough file, and then stained.  Use a pin vise to drill holes in the trunk for insertion of "branches"...small twigs.  You can stretch the foliage mat material over the whole structure or spray the tree with cheap, scentless hairspray and then dip it into a box of loose foliage material.

By the way, in the process of cutting the foliage mat and stretching it, you'll wind up with some loose foliage material.  Don't discard it...you can coat lichen with Elmer's, dip it into the loose material and make great "shrubs."

Hope this is helpful.  Good luck!

Thanks people.  Now I have a few good methods for trees.  I like the idea of making my own trees from scratch.  Its no fun just buying trees.  You get much more satisfaction when you do things yourself.  I am building my first layout from scratch.  I just got back into my trains when I took them out of storage (after 15 years) and hooked them up for my nephew.  Now that I am older I have the patience to do things methodically. I figured I could start my own layout.

Thanks

Smitty

Aggro's furnace filter on a stick makes good conifers cheap. I use the dried flowers form the Assilbe plant also. Neither make White pine but great "Christmas trees".

These are Asstilbe

These are Furnace filter on a stick

If you need, there are instructions availible form many of us.

I make my own trees and ground foam as well. Having needed literally thousands of trees, I wasn't about to pay the hobby shop for them !!! I grind up old seat cushions and dye the foam with diluted latex paint of my own color choosing. I go out every year usually around late November / December and gather boxes of dried weeds that have a good looking tree shape to them. A heavy coating of spray adhesive firmly attaches the foam to the dried weeds.

Nature provides us with a LOT of scenery materials from dirt to rocks to trees .... and it's all FREE !!!  Here's a shot showing a few of my home-made "weed trees" ....

Mark.

Aww, come on, couldn't you tell that was his models Photoshop'ped onto a "real photo"?

Seriously, that's a nice shot!

Brad 

I use butterfly bushes.  I dry them; preserve them with something similar to Matte Medium; let them dry upside down from a closeline.  I then use hairspray, ground foam, hairspray, ground foam, until I have the desired effect.

I use Aggro Trees for the larger trees.  On both, I use darker colors on the inside to give contrast.

I also use sedum for maple trees.

Sue