Planting Trees - How to secure them to plaster cloth/newspaper on a slope?

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

I’m building the Grand Valley layout kit and have a gazillion trees to plant. I’m not too worried about the ones going into foam and/or horizontal surfaces. But how do I plant them on sloped hills where the surface is only a couple thin layers of plaster cloth over crumpled newspaper? There’s not much “meat” for the trunks to grab other then a thin edge of plaster cloth and maybe wrinkled newspaper underneath.

TIA

2

Good question. Maybe punch a hole so that the trunk will have a tight fit, and secue with a drop of CA. ? Maybe put the CA on the trunk first, or around the hole?

Mike.

3

That is why I build all basic forms with foam.

4

Bend the trunk of the tree so it forms an angle, then as Mike suggests punch a hole just the thickness of the trunk. Secure with C A to the trunk part being inserted and in the hole.

If the trunk is not long enough use some longer wire attached to make the tree taller. Once attached to the tree bend the wire and do as above.

David

5

I use a hot glue gun. Put a blob on the bottom of the trunk and shove through the hole, sets up in a few seconds.

Mark.

6

My landforms are Durabond patching plaster over aluminum screen - not much thicker than plaster cloth, but considerably stronger. I use mostly weeds or small branches or twigs to make trees, and simply drill a suitably-sized hole, glop some glue (white or yellow) on the bottom of the “trunk”, then jam it into the hole.

This one’s not yet glued in place, as the ground cover is also placed only temporarily, as it’s intended to be used elsewhere…(pictures should enlarge if clicked-on)

…and a later view, with the tree permanently “planted” with glue, after the ground cover was done…

This is much steeper terrrain…

…so I first added some faux background “trees”, using rock-wool insulation, painted green, and with an application of polyfibre and some ground foam. It’s impaled on wooden skewers, glued into holes drilled in the plaster…

I then added some small trees (the ones shown are not yet glued in place, as I was testing for suitable spacing). These shorter trees will have their tops still visible over the taller ones, added later, in the foreground, due to the severity of the slope…

To help keep them upright while the glue sets, they&#

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DSC02941 by wp8thsub, on Flickr

Drill a hole in the plaster, add something like white glue, tacky glue, or adhesive caulk, and insert the trunk. The above slope isn’t much more than a few brushed coats of plaster over fiberglass drywall tape, and the trees stay plenty secure.