What is the best way to make a good looking ground scene around some
cypress knees. I read in the archives about elmers glue, water and
artificial peet moss or something, anyone know what i'm talking about.
any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Bojack
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Dilute the Elmers about 50/50 and mix in peat moss (or coffee grounds if you have 50 pounds of it) until it makes a good paste. Put it in your diorama and pat it until the Elmers floats like concrete. If you want it to look dry, sprinkle dry peat moss over the scene after you finish. If you want it muddy, leave as is.
started with pouring a foam base (if you need to take up a bunch of space.) At the least, mix some mache up with brown/black cement die and smear on for mud. I then paint that with a 50/50 glue/water mixture and sprinkle the mud on it. Once dry, come back with another coat of glue/water and it'll dry hard and wet looking. If you want it dry, sprinkle over last coat of mix and let dry. Also, first, sift/remove the little white chunks in the peat moss from the nursury.
to be sure what you are using is peat moss, and not potting soil instead. The white stuff you speak of is vermiculite, and is added to potting soil as a moisture retaining substance, as well as filler to help spread out the amount of actual potting soil they have to put into a bag to equal the stated weight on the bag. Not trying to be a smart a$$, but having been around greenhouses all my life, as a result of my family's management of them, I have never seen peat moss with the vermiculite in it. Just a little insight.
Peat Moss, Shmeat Moss. No actually I'm glad you threw that out. You've probably saved me some wasted money on a bag of potting soil (or a bunch of pain removing the white stuff.) I bought some stuff before at a taxidermy show so I haven't had to worry about what it's called. Thanks for the info!
Just a lil note; those lil white things are pearlite and they create space in the soil for proper air circulation - much how worms create air passages. Vermiculite is the mineral mica expanded by heat; is light brown and holds moisture. If you are making molds and need to fill undercuts - cut vermiculite with latex and pack it in. This will allow mother molds to pop off without hanging up on the mold material. vermiculite also makes intersting river bottoms as it has a semi metallic, silty, sandy quality to it if ya get the fine stuff =)