How to Make a Medieval Times Crop Scene

Farming was the main source of work for the medieval peasant. Tending to a nobleman's crops was a long difficult process, but recreating it in model form is quite a bit easier. With the help of model railroad scenery and some creative setup you can make a full scene of the medieval farmer hard at work, tending to a crop of wheat ready for the harvest.

Things You'll Need

• Medium-density fiberboard
• Saw
• Sandpaper
• Brown spray paint
• 4 peasant farmer miniatures
• Acrylic paints
• Paintbrush
• Clear-coat
• White glue
• Rubbing alcohol
• Water
• Chemical dropper
• Walthers HO scale wheat field strips
• Model railroad dirt
• Model railroad ground foam
• Scale model pine trees
• Plastic model cement

Instructions

1. Paint the miniatures of the family and the animals using acrylic paints. Paint the models using a dark base coat of black paint, followed by layers of the primary model colors. Use thin layers of paint to build up your colors without causing drips or thick color applications that cover up the model details. Allow each coat to dry before applying the next. After the final coat has dried, spray the model with a clear-coat spray to protect the paint job.

2. Cut the MDF to create a 1-foot-by-1-foot baseboard for your scene. Paint the surface of the board with brown spray paint as a base coat, and allow it to dry overnight.

3. Create a dirt path down the right side of the MDF board. Sprinkle a generous layer of the railroad dirt to create the path. Dilute the white glue (1 part glue, 1 part alcohol, 4 parts water); then, using a chemical dropper, wet the dirt path completely so the glue binds the path particles to each other and the surface of the board.

4. Glue down the strips of model railroad growing wheat in the center of the board next to the path, using the white glue at full strength. The wheat field should take up the majority of the available space. Sprinkle the rest of the board with the ground foam to create the grass, including the house's surroundings, and then glue the foam into place using the dropper with the diluted glue. Allow the terrain to dry overnight. Spray the surface of the terrain with clear-coat.

5. Glue the trees to the board, framing the crop field on the left and rear side. Trees should be placed as naturally as possible. Vary the sizes of the tree models used, and place so that tree canopies lightly touch. Glue the painted farmer miniatures in the wheat field among the growing stalks using the model cement, and use the dropper with the diluted glue to place a thin dirt cover over the miniature bases, and a foam grass cover surrounding tree trunk bases.

Tips & Warnings

• Cut the wheat strips into ragged patches and fill areas between the patches with bare dirt to show a field in mid-harvest.

References

• Diorama Man: How To Make Dioramas
• European Farming During Middle Ages to 1800's

Resources

• Model Scenery Ground Cover