Sagebrush for tree armatures.

[montanan]

Originally Posted by Selector

I have used bare sagebrush as a winter tree thusly:

The thing I really like about sagebrush is that there is absolutely no work required to get a bark finish on it. Thanks mother nature.

[TrainboyH16-44]

As someone who lives in the wrong place for sagebrush, what scale are these models?

[Selector]

What I show above is HO. That is an HO Atlas Master Series Fairbanks-Morse H24-66 "Trainmaster". The sage piece is very slightly pared down, but hardly at all. The bush makes all sorts of suitable armatures, although I can't honestly say I have appraised it for N scale. O Scale would also be quite doable, but more for large bushes than for outright trees, say an elm or a large maple.

[RW&C]

I use it in N, but it takes a little selective pruning to get a chunk that's the right size. I haven't found much of anything that's 'perfect' for N, but many things are okay with a little work. It also makes good deadfall/driftwood/whatever.

[joed2323]

I know the topic is sagebush but i live in upper michigan, im not sure if this grows around me or not???

Is there a different type of bush i can use if i cant get ahold of sagebush??? I like the idea of going outside and finding what i need for my layout, since i like to consider myself a budget modeler.

[Oh5oh]

Originally Posted by joed2323

I know the topic is sagebush but i live in upper michigan, im not sure if this grows around me or not???

Is there a different type of bush i can use if i cant get ahold of sagebush??? I like the idea of going outside and finding what i need for my layout, since i like to consider myself a budget modeler.

I live in sagebrush-deprived Indiana. The best natural tree armatures I've found are the dead bloom stems from a Spirea bush in my front yard. Do a Google search to see what the bush looks like. If they grow here in the Hoosier state, I'd say it's a good bet you have some there in Michigan as well.



It's not sagebrush or Supertree quality, but with some selective pruning and adding green polyfiber and coarse ground foam held in place with cheap hairspray, they're passable. And the total cost per tree is probably fractions of a penny.

Now, if some westerner just felt like gathering up a bunch of sagebrush and mailing it to me, I'd let them....

Jim

[PApat]

Jim,
They look great. As stated above, you can also vary the material you use for your leaves. Noch makes some great foliage material that is spot-on for HO and O sized trees.

This image shows the material pretty well and it's available in at least three shades of green, ranging from light green to dark olive colors.



-bill

[wpkelley]

I looked all over the Texas hill country last week and couldn't find any sagebrush.

[NWP95501]

Next time I go to my ranch I will have to bring some home...I have about 80 acres of the stuff.

[Steve S]

The Super Trees from Scenic Express are a plant from the Gobi Desert called Teloxys Aristata (a.k.a. Seafoam.) Here's a site showing how to grow it.

http://teloxysaristata.blogspot.com/

Steve S