Vegetation is what brings a base to life. A painted figure on a brown board is a model; the same figure in grass, with a weed at the boot and a few leaves on the ground, is a scene. This category collects everything such a scene is made of – static grass, tufts, scale leaves, shrubs, laser-cut plants and natural material. Most of it goes on in minutes and the difference shows at once.

What is in the category

How to work

The order is nearly always the same and three steps are enough. Area first: static grass sprinkled onto thinned PVA covers most of a base. Then points: tufts go where a weed would actually grow – at the foot of a wall, between stones, under a wheel. Details last: a few leaves, one fern, a scrap of dry grass. Those final three seconds of work make the biggest difference of all.

If you are starting out, two things are enough: one static grass in a summer shade and one sheet of tufts. Those two cover most bases. Leaves, shrubs and ferns are what finish a particular scene.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between static grass and tufts?
Static grass is sprinkled over an area and makes continuous grass cover. A tuft is a ready-made clump on a self-adhesive backing, placed spot by spot. A good base carries both – grass as the field, tufts as the irregularity.

How do I keep it from looking artificial?
Do not use a single shade. Two static grasses roughly mixed, tufts from a different season, a few extra leaves – and the surface stops reading as a carpet. Naturalness comes from irregularity, not from the quality of any one product.

Can vegetation be painted once laid?
Yes, but only with an airbrush and heavily thinned paint. A brush lays the fibres flat. A light pass of ochre or brown from above unifies the whole scene and removes the factory look.

What else do I need?
Groundwork under the vegetation – earth and sand pastes from the Textures category, dust and dirt from Pigments. Tools for the work are in Tools and Accessories.