Roots of woody plants work great for scale trees. The bark layer of roots is very fine and is a scale representation of bigger trees. The reason I say woody plants (plants that have bark) is that the root branches will have bark as well as the trunk of the plant. The very fine root structure of some plants makes for some great branch configurations and if you roll them in glue as was mentioned earlier they will pick up more material, making the tree look a little fuller. Branches used as trees tend to have an out of scale bark and because usualy the moisture content of a branch leaves it first (before roots) the smaller, more fine branches tend to break off, leaving too simple a tree for my likes. Roots have finer tendrils and the closer to the end of the root branch you get the finer the tendrils will be, giving your scale tree more branches.
The bark on roots will tend to reflect the bark of the tree. So if the tree you are looking at has smooth bark, the roots will tend to have smooth bark conversely rough bark will usually yield rough bark on the roots.
If you go and look for uprooted trees or you pull woody brush or weeds you will notice in the root ball a variety of very interesting shapes. You can get some really nice trees from some plants. Knock the dirt off and rinse off the root. Set it out in the sun to dry. This will do several things, it will harden and dry the root material (roots have a higher water content), They will lighten or darken depending on the plant. As they dry in the sun the bark will stand out a little more. Raising the detail and adding to the "scale bark" effect. If necessary you can make it pop a little more simply by drybrushing the tree material.
Don't be afraid to mix in some nude tree with your leafy stands. If you at nature you will see dead or bare trees mixed n with live full ones, and in some cases you can leave whole sections of tree bare and while the rest may have whatever leaf material you want.
This is much easier and I think more realistic than some of the ingenious braided or twisted wire with putty coverings. This is a real tree and has the characteristcs of said tree.
Depending on battlefield conditions and recent barages you can have bare trees in the middle of summer. Add some "scorching" or in some cases actually char the tree and use it. to a onice effect. Rather than snipping branches off, tist and tear the branches to show damage from shelling. You can twist it and give it a frayed look by dragging it along concrete. while it is still damp or still has a little moisture left in the cells.
Goodluck.
Mike
Mike
"Imagination is the dye that colors our lives"
Marcus Aurellius
A good friend will come and bail you out of jail...but, a true friend will be sitting next to you saying, "Damn...that was fun!"
