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Clearing the Trench

I started with a Styrofoam base, cut then carved into the proper dimensions. The “Earth” is Celluclay, tinted appropriately and spread along the strongpoint walls, with support logs (actual twigs) and planks (balsa) added while the “mud” was still wet.

The same method was used along the trench walls and floor. The lathing along the walls and floor are dried wildflower stalks from my yard. The logs covering the O.P. are twigs cut with a razor saw.

I purchased several “Natural Bristle” paintbrushes at .99 cents a piece to simulate the thick shin-high grass of the Kursk summer landscape.

I applied a sticky mixture of Celluclay tinted dark green about ¼ inch thick on the Styrofoam base. The thick layer of Celluclay will facilitate the attachment of the “Grass” pieces. Seen here are shredded foam, natural seaweed and bristle ready to be attached.

The base is covered in section in order to allow enough time to attach the vegetation before the Celluclay mix becomes to dry to work with. This view shows a finished section prior to airbrushing.

Once the groundwork has dried overnight, I lightly airbrushed various shades of green on the grass along with earth tones to simulate some bare spots.

I also “Reverse Engineer” by adding the appropriate colors to thegroundwork, matching the figure’s camouflage, blending the two.

This view clearly displays the stark difference between the plain Styrofoam base and the applied groundwork and structure.