Fairplex Garden Outdoor Railroad Garden - Trolly
There’s a good share of us that wax nostalgic about trains. Is it riding the rails, watching them scoot through our country side, restoring old depots and Pullman cars or playing with model trains?
I have a friend who introduced me to Model Train Gardening (MTG) and I’ve been fascinated ever since.
You may think putting model trains in a northern garden is a disaster waiting to happen, but there are virtually hundreds of these gardens in the northern states.
Like most hobbies, there is every kind of resource possible for those interested. Web sites, clubs, magazines, stores and MTG public gardens are abundant. Like most hobbyists, Model Train Gardeners enjoy sharing their gardens and knowledge as much as doing the work.
My friend’s MTG was half outside and the other half ran inside their porch. Others are in hillsides, raised beds, incorporated around pools, in small gardens or use an entire yard.
Trains are from the smallest gauge to big enough to ride.
Most have a theme. They mimic an area, towns, a period in time, historic places, and many focus on a particular railroad.
The flora around a MTG is as specific as the trains. To look in scale, they must be as miniature as the trains themselves. Small evergreens pruned to look like miniature trees are necessary for balance.
Water in the form of streams or lakes (a train has to have a bridge), grass, flowers, and other miniature perennial trees and bushes are an art form all themselves.
MTGs are labor intensive but are generally the hobby of someone who enjoys it so much, it’s not work as much as a labor of love. Because everything must be kept to scale, the live greenery requires maintenance. Being outdoors requires clean-up on a regular basis.
Some of the hobbyists build all their own landscapes, buildings, terrain, and accessories. Others, frequent flea markets, e-Bay, and estate sales for buildings, cars, track, and the other little items it takes to look realistic. While many started with a basement full of plywood and childhood dreams, Model Train Gardeners take it to a whole other level once they venture outside.
The entire mechanics of MTGs is another issue. I’ll only lightly touch on a few considerations: Level firm track bed, power source, winter protection and storage, drainage, children and pets.
If you think it’s only for the rich and famous, consider the very nice MTG viewed during a Galva Arts Council’s Garden Tour a few years ago. Built on a small hill in their back yard, it was the beginning of a very nice feature. I did notice every child and his father had a certain dreamy look in their eyes as they walked around this miniature landscape!
If you would like to view a MTG or get some ideas, visit the many ones incorporated into public gardens. The Chicago Botanical Garden has one based on all handmade replicas of historical buildings.
A website worth visiting belongs to the “Minnesota Garden Railway Society” who humorously describes themselves as “empire builders.”
I’m just sure the restoration of the old Lafayette Depot should include a model train garden. Perhaps a call to the McKirgans is in order! Then their annual railroad music fest will include singing: “I hear the train a comin' - It's rollin' 'round the bend…” *
* "Folsom Prison Blues"
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