The MF&FMLR model railway project: Making the marsh (Part 2)

Once the muddy part of the marsh was done, I began to look at ways in which to replicate the vegetation found in a marsh. In the end I decided to experiment with a method based on one that I had seen for modelling hedges. The main components were:

• Pan scourers.
• Various acrylic paints.
• PVA glue.
• An old (i.e. disposable if necessary) soft paintbrush.
• An assortment of different green and brown scatter material.
• A jar of warm water.
• A bowl of warm water.

Other than the green pan scourers – which were bought as a pack of five from a local supermarket – I had everything that I needed to hand.

Before I outline the method than I used, I need to issue a warning to anyone contemplating copying it: it is very messy and should only be done on a surface that has been properly covered in old newspapers or a waterproof sheet. I also advise that a large roll of kitchen towel be kept close to hand to mop up any overspills and to dry one's hands one.

• First, I took a green pan scourer and randomly dropped dollops of green and brown acrylic paint over its surface. (I used Oxide Chromium Green, Viridian, Sap Green, and Burnt Sienna acrylic paints previously bought from craft shops.)

• I then used the brush to work the paint into the surface of the scourer until the whole surface was covered. Dipping the brush into the jar of water helped this process.
• The scourer was then scrunched up into a ball as tightly as possible. (Warning: If you attempt to duplicate this method, wet and runny paint will ooze out and drip as you do this and will cover your hands ... so be careful!)
• Once I was satisfied that the paint has well and truly been forced into the scourer, I rinsed it out in the bowl of clean water, and squeeze-dried by hand. I then placed it to one side on something absorbent (and disposable, such as a number of layers of kitchen towel) and allowed it to dry.

• Once this has been done, I cleaned up the area I had used very thoroughly to ensure that domestic calm was maintained!!!

Before gluing pieces of my home-made foliage in place on the board, I cut one of the three pan scourers I had prepared into small, randomly-shaped pieces, which I placed at various locations around and in the marsh.

Until this point, I felt that everything was going well ... and then I realised that my experiment was actually not going to work! The result did not just look bad; IT LOOKED AWFUL!

Back to the drawing board!