Question on leaves and dirt habitat

[msc]

My understatnding for dirt bases is that you mix 50\50 water elmers glue into mud and spread out on base
And if you push leaves into while wet they will stay and then spray with water glue mixture to help lock them down
So my question is do the natural leaves stay pliable in the bases or will the fall apart down the line

If they are are likely to need replacing down the road what is you tell your customers to explain this

I like the natural looks but  I have no Idea what time does to these after I send them out
Just looking for so advice from some of you that have been at it longer than Myself for pros and cons to watch out for

[Codi]

Natural leaves will become dry and brittle and lose their color. I use fake ones so they will stay together and stay bright.

[Sikk]

When ever I work with habitat that may need maintenance, I try to install it so that it easy to maintain. When I work with dried grass, or other stemmy plants I drill a hole into the vegetation and insert a wire strong enough and into far enough to hold the weight of that piece, I leave a tag end long enough to insert into the the dirt base, etc. When it needs to be replaced I pull out the wire/ plant and insert a new one in its place. I have done this with grasses, sorghum, small branches etc. Dirt can be freshened with a dried peat moss/black dirt mix. Paint a fresh layer of elmers and sprinkle the dry mix on top. Vacuum off the excess when dry. I coat my dried leaves with modge podge, several layers, they last for years if not touched by little hands. Vegetation can be airbrushed to green up or color up if needed. High quality artificial vegetation is best and a must for certain applications , but the avaerage customer seldom wants to pay for it. Most natural habitat, if cared for will last for years. As far as customers I explain this before they decide on habitat so that they know it will not last for ever, but I also say when that time comes, it is a good time for the mount to be cleaned as well.  paul

[msc]

Thanks for the response
That helps out alot
Its tough going through the learning curve and learning the hard way most of the time

[Samantha.]

Were I am the bush habitat is easy to reproduce with as it contains alot of naturally dried leaves and sticks etc.
Would you have some sort of similar habitat there to experiment with?

I find once the dry leaves are coated with the elmers mix they feel stronger, can bend some and are less likely to break.
For a 'green/living' look I usually go artificial. I did preserve some grasses on a few display mounts and they have faded some what over time.

[bill@hogheaven]

For maintainence free I push rocks driftwood & artificial plants only. Dirt & natural plants will require complete refurbishing in time if not under glass.

[msc]

I normally buy the dryed grassess from hobby lobby and Michaels
What brought this up was I wanted to make the ground cover with Leaves not autum colored just the brown dead leaves that had fallen from the trees
Mounts for my display I do not worry about as I can refinish them as needed
I was concerned on using them on customer work and if they actually last over time or not
                 

[Wildside]

I saved some this fall and plan to soak them in a glycerine solution to see if it will keep them from getting brittle.  It's hard to make something look as natural as the real thing.

[Samantha.]

I normally buy the dryed grassess from hobby lobby and Michaels
What brought this up was I wanted to make the ground cover with Leaves not autum colored just the brown dead leaves that had fallen from the trees                 

Thats what I have used for many years, (dried grass & leaves), and the display mounts i have done with them are still a-ok after about 8 yrs.

[Critter]

Not sure on the logevity of the dried leaves as i just did my first. I used 50/50 elmers and water and diped the leaves into it.

[Brian Jones]

Matuska Supply sells leaves already preserved. Plus you get a free funsize candy bar.