The Scenery Clinic Pt. XIX
Railroad Model Craftsman 2012-01 pg. 78 Scale: Category: "Scenery - Trees, Shrubs, Bushes"
In addition to using cut up leaves for modeling fall leaves, the article also describes how to model patches of snow.
The Scenery Clinic XVIII
Railroad Model Craftsman 2011-12 pg. 46 Scale: Category: "Scenery - Streets"
The authors show how they created structure foundations, roads, and parking lots using anchor bolt cement, including "burying" rails in concrete.