An Introduction To Garden Railroads

by Bill Murphy

A popular trend in model railroading is using equipment and accessories that are rugged enough to stand up to the weather to build outdoor railroad layouts. The term “garden railroads” stems from the fact that these outdoor layouts are often integrated into a garden, with the garden providing part or all of the scenery and landscaping.

Basically it is the same idea as an indoor railroad but there can be a few differences from the design point of view.

First of all, they must be rigorous enough to endure the weather and withstand long term use. If you are lucky enough to have a favorable climate, your railroad could run for most of the year. In harsher climates, you may only be able to run it for a few months, storing it the rest of the time.

It also needs to be easy to maintain. Merging it into you garden area is a lot of work but if you have to take it out for maintenance, that could be even more work.

Europe introduced the garden railroad but they are popular worldwide now. That makes finding G-scale trains and extras a little easier than it used to be.

There are events and conventions dedicated to Garden Railways, such as the Garden Railway Convention held each year in Denver. A calendar of these events can be found on www.gardentrains.org or in the events section of www.trains.com.

Garden railroads can make a great addition to your backyard, strictly for your own enjoyment, or they can be added to more public places where everyone can enjoy them.

Just remember if you set up your display somewhere that is more public, you’ll be sure to attract more onlookers!

About the Author:

Looking for ideas for building a train table? You’ll find lots of helpful tips at The Model Railroader website. Visit http://www.themodelrailroader.com to get a free copy of my report “Model Train Design Secrets”