While waiting for The Girl to finish her roller skating class on Sunday, I had some time to sit in the car and study the copse to the left (north) of the pasture in more detail. Returning to Flickr, I had to find my reference material once again, and along the way, I amassed a collection of other photographers’ views of the farm on Burnstown Road. I’ve captured them in a Flickr gallery.
Being in the car, I couldn’t find my favourite photo, so I had to work from a different one:
I concentrated a drawing on the copse, trying to identify individual trees, and where I could, identifying a possible species. The resulting sketch looks like a pile of boulders, but I hope it will inform the modelling.
Using the cattle in the foreground for scale, I estimated the assembly of trees on the right at 5 cows high. I think the cattle are the mid-sized Ayreshire breed, which makes them – after a quick Google – 50-53 inches high. So those trees are slightly taller than 20 feet (6 m) or 2 3/4 inches in HO scale. That section of the copse is roughly 30-35 feet wide.
I was hoping to find some sumac as it is such a common tree in Ontario, and there it is. With its large compound leaves and reddish August fruit, it will be a challenge to model.
Pembroke:87 
wow, that Sumac will be demanding to model. The leaves are so delicate! On google I noticed that a number of folks have created 3d models of Sumac trees. Doubt they are printable in HO scale . . . It occurs to me the options are etching, printing, cutting or casting, or some natural material like tiny feathers and a whole lot of time with tweezers and glue . . . Or a combination. Interesting to think what your Cricut might do for those leaves.
I think the Cricut is likely to make a mess of such leaves, Rob. It needs the material to stick to the cutting mat hard enough to resist the pull of the blade dragging across the material. A sumac leaflet is only about 1mm long, and is sure to detach from the mat when the blade drags near.
Etching might be the answer…
I thought Kempinski offered sumac etches way back. Not sure what scale. Might have been someone else.
Thanks, I’ll check it out.