ELIZAB E TH PE T E RS E N Small worlds CURT KIPP Garden railroads combine a passion for miniature plants with the intrigue of model trains “close enough,” garden railroads are good fun for grown-ups and grandkids alike. Families and couples involved in By Elizabeth Petersen the cooperative hobby enjoy the wide G is for “garden” … and for G-scale appeal of the activity. (also called large-scale) trains used “Trains evoke the kid in all of us,” in the fast-growing hobby of outdoor said Jeff Pera, assistant manager of model railroading. (The “G” actually horticulture for The Oregon Garden in stands for “gross,” which means “big” in Silverton, Ore. German.) A G-scale railroad recently added to Garden railroads can inspire awe in the young as Garden railroads combine the the Children’s Garden is so popular that well as the young at heart. The Baker and Grande intrigue of trains with the fun and chal- it has contributed to a “massive turn- Ronde Railroad (above) is owned by Gary Lee of Corbett, Ore., filling a huge swath of his backyard. lenge of creating miniature worlds with around in the number of families” visit- Meanwhile, The Oregon Garden in Silverton, Ore., small, slow-growing plants. ing The Oregon Garden, Pera said. has its own model railroad in the children's area. Whether participants seek exact ▲ scale replication or are satisfied with 24 SEPTEMBER 2011 ▲ DIGGER 23 ▲ GARDEN RAILROADS CURT KIPP Growers and garden centers are supplying dwarf and miniature plants, especially conifers and groundcovers, to emulate natural worlds in the scale of garden railroads. The two-year-old, 1:20 scale garden railroad mimics the natural settings of the Northwest, where Great Northern and Southern Pacific lines actually ran. Two regional train clubs — the Pacific Crossings Model Railway Club of Salem and the Rose City Garden Railway Society of Portland — designed, built and maintain it. “Clubs take the details seriously,” Pera said. Powered by a low-voltage, elec- tric track, replica diesel-style engines Dave and Margaret Kooken of Vancouver, Wash., put together this impressive model railroad. The Trout pull cars and a caboose on a track that Lake and Cumberland Railroad takes up about 40 percent of their backyard and often attracts admiring visitors, who include seniors in care residences as well as groups of children. Dave is the engineer, while loops around a mountain and through Margaret has taken responsibility for the groundcovers and dwarf conifers comprising the landscape. hedges to the delight of visitors. Dwarf and miniature plants selected for the garden require minimal pruning, the layout too, while dwarf Alberta if any, Pera said. The scenes are heav- spruce and Lawson cypress trees fill the ily planted with conifers, Corsican mint, need for “tall” evergreen trees. thyme and brass buttons. Gary designed and built the layout Garden railroads from scratch, including the buildings, The Baker and Grand Ronde Railroad locomotives and even rail lines. Three Gary Lee, like many others, got combine the intrigue water features help re-create the actual hooked on model railroading with a Sumpter Valley Railway that ran along childhood train set. Seeking a more of trains with the the Powder River in 1897. social, outdoor hobby, Lee took up At a recent “operating session” for G-scale railroading with his wife fun and challenge of the Rose City Garden Railway Society at Jonette. The result is an extensive, real- the Lee layout, engineers put the bat- istic-scale layout in Corbett, Ore. tery operated, remote controlled trains Jonette, the plant person of the creating miniature to work. Just as actual trains haul and pair, approximated an accurate scale deliver loads, the G-scale trains had using many types of thyme, including worlds with small, realistic tasks to accomplish. elfin, wooly, red creeping, white creep- Mimicking the contours of eastern ing, Pink Chintz, Lemon Frost, Archer’s slow-growing plants. Oregon, Gary’s eight-year-old layout has Gold, Spicy Orange and Argentea, all grade changes, a big trestle, a water- of which can take foot traffic. Low- wheel, watering stations and a tunnel. growing sedums, mosses and tiny ▲ perennials cover banks and bends in 26 ▲ GARDEN RAILROADS Running the trains here requires prob- E LIZAB lem solving: if a load proves too heavy E TH P to haul up a hill, for instance, the engi- E neer sends for help and another engine T E RS E goes to assist. N Garden railway hobbyists con- stitute a growing subculture, Lee said. Especially popular in the upper Midwest, the family-oriented activity appeals to many people. The popularity of Garden Railways magazine — circu- lation 250,000 — proves the point. Trout Lake and Cumberland Railroad Dave Kooken has always been a railroad buff, and Margaret Kooken has always been a gardener. Their eight- year-old garden railroad in Vancouver, Wash., named for Trout Lake, Wash. and Cumberland, Md. (hometowns for both) started when Dave started sharing Garden Railway magazine plant articles with Margaret. According to Dave, the Kooken lay- out is built for effect, rather than exact E LIZAB scale reproduction. First came the gar- E TH P den, then Dave laid out two tracks. One E T E is electric; the other is battery operated RS E N by remote control. “There is really no standard for gar- den railroads,” he said. “Members of the clubs do whatever they like.” The Kookens enjoy bringing home interesting plants from places they visit, but they run the trains for the enjoyment of others, including grandkids. They have found that cer- tain plants don’t work well in railroad gardens. For example, brass buttons can run beneath tracks and become a problem; Blue Star creeper is invasive and can take over the whole layout. What are Margaret’s favorite rail- road garden plants? “Trees with crazy shapes,” she said. Reflecting this passion, Gary Lee's Baker and Grande Ronde Railroad includes this spectacular trestle which crosses over a the Trout Lake and Cumberland is deco- canyon filled with rugged rocks and low-growing plants. rated with interesting conifers, includ- ing Chamacyparis obtusa ‘Rainbow,’ an extremely dwarf, very slow growing, golden Hinoki false cypress. 28 ▲ 26 SEPTEMBER 2011 ▲ DIGGER ADDED TO FERTILIZING – HEALTHIER, NORMALIZED, Potential-MAXIMIZED UNIVERSAL PLANT ACHIEVEMENT OF ALL TIME UNCHALLENGED SINCE 1940; WORLD’S FAIR ® TM TM Gold Medal VI TM ® CELEBRATE WITH DR. JOHN A. A. THOMSON’S VITAMIN INSTITUTE – GUARANTEED FAR BEST SINCE 1940 SUPERthrive’s® creator, “great legendary genius” biochemist Dr. Thomson is in 35 different Who’s Who directories, some with SUPERthrive’s® unique efficacies unchallenged guarantee-proof. In 2006, Dr. Thomson became the first chemist to win the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lawn and Garden Marketing and Distribution Association. VITAMIN INSTITUTE 12610 Saticoy Street South North Hollywood, CA 91605 Phone (800) 441-VITA (8482) FAX (818) 766-VITA (8482) www.superthrive.com ▲ GARDEN RAILROADS ELIZAB E TH PE T E RS E N Producing the plants wholesale Wholesale grower Youngblood Nursery in Salem, Ore. produces plants for use in railroad and other small gar- dens. Plants in the Tiny Treasures and Premium Tiny Treasures categories are great for railroad hobbyists. “You can plop ‘em in the ground to achieve the look you want,” sales man- ager Chris Steinke said. Dwarf and miniature pines, spruces and other conifers are a favorite of garden railroad designers. Tiny Treasures meet the need for Although dwarf Alberta spruces are popular, they can outgrow a garden railroad in less than a decade. Alternative spruce cultivars such as ‘Gnome‘ and ‘Pixie’ are more suitable because they grow more slowly. accurate scale. Small plants that look like mature specimens are exactly what Miniature Conifers the railroad gardeners want, Steinke said. Many dwarf and miniature coni- Mature Sun/shade fers need little pruning and can be Name USDA size Description/ Zones (H x W) comment used for a long time before needing replacement. Dwarf balsam fir sun mound or trim Youngblood started Tiny Treasures (Abies balsamea nana) 12”x12” for a tree, fragrant 3-8 to meet increasing demand for small Kosteri dwarf cypress sun/part shade fanned (Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Kosteri’) 3’x 2’ foliage, green cone 3-8 plants and to “get product to consum- Tsukumo sawara cypress sun/part shade low, green ers faster and at a lower price point in (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Tsukumo’) 8”x12” mound of fine foliage 3-8 smaller sizes,” Steinke said. Dwarf red cedar sun/part shade The niche market for small plants (Chamaecyparis thyoides ‘Meth’s Dwarf’) 2’x1’ classic forest tree 3-8 also includes container gardening and Tansu dwarf Japanese cedar sun/part shade broadly bonsai. The Tiny Treasures line lets (Cryptomeria japonica ‘Tansu’) 2’x2’ upright forest tree 6-10 garden centers to test sales of rare and Blue Star singleseed juniper sun/part shade (Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’) 1’x2’ blue-green, starry foliage 4-10 unusual plants before they commit to Little Gem dwarf spruce sun/part shade buying more or larger sizes, Steinke said. (Picea abies ‘Little Gem’) 10”x12” flat birdsnest 2-8 Youngblood can fit 30 Tiny Jean’s Dilly dwarf spruce sun/part shade slender, Treasure into one box. “It is easy to (Picea glauca ‘Jean’s Dilly’) 2’x 1’ conical forest tree 2-8 ship these plants through UPS, and Dwarf black spruce sun/part shade blue-green, freight is not out of control,” he said. (Picea mariana ‘Nana’) 10”x10” compact shrub or tree 2-8 Retailers like to get creative with Blue Pearl dwarf Colorado spruce sun silvery blue (Picea pungens ‘Blue Pearl’) 3’x3’ dense foliage 2-8 the merchandising of these plants.