J.S.
Tea leaves work well and some of the herbal types have variations and small "twigs" which can substitute for small branches.
Try a market which has a reasonable supply of herbal / new age places in it.
They usually have tea blends in open containers.
Some of the dried spices work well too. Coriander and parsley are fair approximations of leaves in scale
Winter in Brisbane?..... HAH !
It was minus two here last week.
Cheers, Pete.