Model railroad landscaping and scenery such as N scale trees, greenery, hills, and other scenic components really add dimension and authenticity to any model railway layout. True-to-life scenic landscaping really captivates a railfan audience. And constructing it is generally much less complicated than newbie model railroaders think.
And by the way, I get a real charge out of seeing all the detail work and lifelike realism. The beauty and details are engaging, and I never seem to tire of looking at a well-made layout.
I guess when it comes down to it, model railroad layouts appeal to the child like qualities in all of us. When you get involved in this hobby you get to have lot of play time and imagination stimulation.
When you build a model railroad layout, "you" become the big man in charge of your new city or town. It's "you" who has the authority to call all the shots. And since you are the owner of your new town, you're responsible for the success or failure of planning, transportation services, human services, planting N scale trees, and every other facet of train table design.
Model railroad shrubs, bushes, and trees come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. They can be purchased as pre-made scenery, or if you like to explore your creative side, you're free to make your own.
On the make-your-own side of the house, you can buy N scale tree kits from Woodland Scenics and a number of other manufacturers. These DIY kits typically contain either wire armatures or dried plants for the main tree structure, and all the foliage materials needed to make a quality, realistic tree.
And, for the budding model railroad "arborist" in you, you can also make your trees and shrubs "completely" from scratch. As with the DIY kit method, this later option usually involves making the tree trunk and branches out of wire or using dried plant material for the main structure.
And when you opt for creating your trees from scratch, you need to get the right foliage and bonding agents to probably finish your project. Also, if you ultimately decide to use wire instead of dried plant material for the tree trunk and branch structure, you will need to bend and manipulate the wire into a realistic tree shape.
Maybe it's a fear of the unknown, but I have never built mine completely from scratch. I've always stuck with the kit method. I'm going to make it a point to try a scratch built tree one of these days, I swear! But for now I'm sticking with what I know, and what, at least from my perspective; seems to be the easier option.
N Gauge Tree Size Considerations
Choosing the right size N scale trees for your model railroad layout will largely depend on the geographic region and the tree variety your modeling. The main objective is to make things on your layout as real and believable as possible. To ensure achievement of this goal, always do everything for your train table with careful consideration for how it appears in the real world.
If you are building model railroad scenery to mimic that of the Antarctic, complete with igloos, Eskimos, and polar bears; it probably wouldn't look too realistic to plant a patch of palm trees on the side of an ice capped mountain. In real life, they would quickly die in such a harsh environment, and it just wouldn't look real.
In comparison to reality, model trees are usually a bit small. As a model railroad scale, N gauge helps to close that gap. Because of their small size, you can build realistic scenery large enough to dwarf the locomotives, rolling stock, buildings and other scenic features.
As a general rule of thumb, in order to achieve a true to life prototypical look, your trees should probably average between 4 and 8 inches tall. These size constraints will vary depending on the types of trees being modeled. And the figures will likely be a little higher or lower than originally planned.
A good idea is to check out Wikipedia and other websites that provide information on the particular tree you're interested in. Find out how large the trees typically grow for your selected region and do the math to convert to N scale.
Have a lot of fun when you're planning your layout and all of your model train scenery. Enjoying yourself is really what it's all about. If you're pleased with the way your layout looks, that's really all that matters.
And remember, nothing is set in stone. With this hobby you can always go back and change the scenery if something isn't quite up to snuff. - 31503
And by the way, I get a real charge out of seeing all the detail work and lifelike realism. The beauty and details are engaging, and I never seem to tire of looking at a well-made layout.
I guess when it comes down to it, model railroad layouts appeal to the child like qualities in all of us. When you get involved in this hobby you get to have lot of play time and imagination stimulation.
When you build a model railroad layout, "you" become the big man in charge of your new city or town. It's "you" who has the authority to call all the shots. And since you are the owner of your new town, you're responsible for the success or failure of planning, transportation services, human services, planting N scale trees, and every other facet of train table design.
Model railroad shrubs, bushes, and trees come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. They can be purchased as pre-made scenery, or if you like to explore your creative side, you're free to make your own.
On the make-your-own side of the house, you can buy N scale tree kits from Woodland Scenics and a number of other manufacturers. These DIY kits typically contain either wire armatures or dried plants for the main tree structure, and all the foliage materials needed to make a quality, realistic tree.
And, for the budding model railroad "arborist" in you, you can also make your trees and shrubs "completely" from scratch. As with the DIY kit method, this later option usually involves making the tree trunk and branches out of wire or using dried plant material for the main structure.
And when you opt for creating your trees from scratch, you need to get the right foliage and bonding agents to probably finish your project. Also, if you ultimately decide to use wire instead of dried plant material for the tree trunk and branch structure, you will need to bend and manipulate the wire into a realistic tree shape.
Maybe it's a fear of the unknown, but I have never built mine completely from scratch. I've always stuck with the kit method. I'm going to make it a point to try a scratch built tree one of these days, I swear! But for now I'm sticking with what I know, and what, at least from my perspective; seems to be the easier option.
N Gauge Tree Size Considerations
Choosing the right size N scale trees for your model railroad layout will largely depend on the geographic region and the tree variety your modeling. The main objective is to make things on your layout as real and believable as possible. To ensure achievement of this goal, always do everything for your train table with careful consideration for how it appears in the real world.
If you are building model railroad scenery to mimic that of the Antarctic, complete with igloos, Eskimos, and polar bears; it probably wouldn't look too realistic to plant a patch of palm trees on the side of an ice capped mountain. In real life, they would quickly die in such a harsh environment, and it just wouldn't look real.
In comparison to reality, model trees are usually a bit small. As a model railroad scale, N gauge helps to close that gap. Because of their small size, you can build realistic scenery large enough to dwarf the locomotives, rolling stock, buildings and other scenic features.
As a general rule of thumb, in order to achieve a true to life prototypical look, your trees should probably average between 4 and 8 inches tall. These size constraints will vary depending on the types of trees being modeled. And the figures will likely be a little higher or lower than originally planned.
A good idea is to check out Wikipedia and other websites that provide information on the particular tree you're interested in. Find out how large the trees typically grow for your selected region and do the math to convert to N scale.
Have a lot of fun when you're planning your layout and all of your model train scenery. Enjoying yourself is really what it's all about. If you're pleased with the way your layout looks, that's really all that matters.
And remember, nothing is set in stone. With this hobby you can always go back and change the scenery if something isn't quite up to snuff. - 31503
About the Author:
Learn more about N Scale Trains. Stop by Conrad Fairfax's site where you can find out all about N Scale Train Set and what it can do for you.
