Not just matte medium

I've been told (by folks who have a lot more layout-building experience than I do) that diluted white glue is fine for Super Trees. I used hairspray on my first batch, and they've held up well, but I've been told they'll lose their hold over time, so I play to overcoat them with matte medium or white glue.  I've also heard from some who've had good results with spray adhesive, such as 3M's Super 77.

Straightening Super Trees

I don't bother with the whole matte medium dip method. I find it slow, messy and takes up a great deal of space while the trees are drying. Plus I never could get the trees as straight as I wanted.

I steam the trunks straight and use hot glue to thicken up the trunks. there's a video of me doing this on the second page of this blog.

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/10198

As for the Super 77.. Great stuff! I use it for everything, attaching leaves, static grass, ground foam and shredded mulch for forest floors. It's probably the most expensive adhesive out there but it sticks and stays stuck, I've had many of the cheaper versions fail on me. I don't think I could do without it, why I'll bet you could even spray it on your breakfast cereal. Frosted flakes anyone?

That's an awesome video which

That's an awesome video which should save me some time and $$$, great replies thanks, I will give it a try if I get time tomorrow.

Diluted White Glue will work

Diluted White Glue will work just fine, Joe. The basic idea here is simply to coat the tree armatures with some substance that will seal them from seriously drying out following the boiling, or steaming, process. Failure to seal SuperTree armatures results in them becoming very brittle over time and much more liable to damage.

NYW&B

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For what ever reason the

For what ever reason the direction I have say to not use white glue. I have no idea why.

_ Doug

Quite possibly, Doug, this

Quite possibly, Doug, this could be because diluted White Glue can make the job a bit more messy and unpleasant.

Whereas diluted Matte Medium will coat the tree armatures as simply and tightly as water, Diluted White Glue often tends to initially form little "webs" between many of the the branches when they are removed from the sealing/dipping solution.

When that happens, it is then necessary to shake off the armatures and blow hard on the webs to get them to break. As an alternate approach, you can give the tree a quick shot of hair spray. That will also break up the webs.

NYW&B