Today I stopped by a pine tree in central Athens, Creece. The wind had bent it when it was younger so that its trunk was almost horizontal. As it is early spring here, it was in bloom—the flowers being clusters of tiny yellow melon-shaped buds that will in time become pine cones. It occurred to me that they can be used to represent melons once painted and placed in a box or basket to go on a tank or any other vehicle or diorama, so I picked up a few. Such melons can also be glued into a row and make a fruit bed…
On further reflection, pine tree bark (suitably cut and shaped) can be used to represent stones and when grated on wet and dry they give a dark red powder to be used as rust stains.
Also, pine needles, now green but brown when dry in summer, can be used to make many things:
a. bayonets –the tips.
b. reeds…
c. African hut walls…
d. Indian headgear feathers…
e. knives…
f. Bedouin awnings or lean-to’s at 45 degrees to the ground (white-glue them touching each other on paper, cut ends that protrude from paper edges, coat all with white glue when dry—green for young bamboo, yellow for summer one.
g. When green, the needles can be bent—make circular rings of flat cross section,for your example, and other stuff…belts and webbing and even rifle slings or any type of sling…
There are more uses I will think of soon. Add whatever else you may think of, please.
Today I also bought turps made of pine tree resin. To use as thinner for enamels and oils—they come in one-litre bottles here and cost 4 euros per bottle. It smells of pine.
Nick
