| Tool |
Description |
Pros |
Cons |
Pics |
|
XFrog
- see the XFrog Page |
|
| SpeedTree
|
Available as a MAX plugin ($500) or a developer library
(SpeedTreeRT, $8500 for a single-product license).
Integrates with the Unreal Engine, and also the Gamebryo, BigWorld,
Vision and Multiverse engines. |
Claims to avoid the problems of billboarded trees
without using a lot of polygons, with dynamic LOD.
Include an option to design your own trees. The runtime allows trees to
move with the wind. |
SDK is expensive and not usable for freely-distributed
apps. |
 |
| Algorithmic
Botany:
VLAB
(Linux) and L-Studio
(Windows) |
Dr. Prusinkiewicz's full package, was available as
shareware, now around $300 (?) Latest website has no information about
availability. |
- Lots of features.
- Most major papers in the field came from research with this
package.
|
|
QuickTime:
|
| Lenné3D |
Déjàvu3D
Plug-in for ArcGIS (free download)
Déjàvu3D
SDK (free, upon request)
Marché3D
(free download)
Flora3D
collections are €99/year |
Leverages Xfrog.
The results of several years of academic research into realtime
rendering of large number of plants. |
Rather large file sizes. |
 |
|
ngPlant |
Standalone application for creating plants. Looks
very much like a simpler version of Xfrog, with a more narrow focus. |
Free and open source.
Seems fairly powerful for a free program. |
Lots of complex controls, would take a while to learn. |
 |
| Virtual
Gardening
and Virtual Bonsai
|
Standalone application from
JFP, Inc., for modelling
gardens and bonsai trees. |
Beautiful output, realtime interaction (OpenGL)
|
Only available in Japanese |
|
| Arbaro |
Tree modelling tool, Free and open-source, written in
Java. |
Free (gratis and libre).
Writes OBJ files. |
Look like just a few types of plant possible. |
 |
|
TTreemagik |
Tree modeler, $50 for Windows, from Aliencodec. |
- Low-polygon output with texture per branch
- Many output formats
- Cheap
|
- Limited range of output, no real species
- Really weird nearly-illegible UI
- Highly restricted use of output
|
 |
|
Plant-Life |
Plant modeler, $45 for Windows, from Aliencodec. Does
"rocks, mushrooms, grass, weeds, ferns, lilies, flowers, bushes, twigs,
tropicals". |
|
|
 |
| Dryad |
Standalone tree app, for Windows and Mac. Claims to
output models in OBJ format. |
|
- Unstable, couldn't make it run on my machine
- Consumes 1 GB of RAM for no apparent reason
- Trees look fake
|
 |
|
Plant Studio |
Herbaceous plant modeller for Win32. Use to be
inexpensive, now free. |
- Does gardens and small flowering plants very nicely
- Great deal of parameter control in real botanical terms
- Free
|
- Uses a dated, built-in software renderer instead of a 3D API
- 3D output is limited to POV and DXF
|
 |
| Forester
Arboretum |
Tree modeler, $35 for Windows. Generates detailed
trees in POV-Ray, .x, and .obj formats. |
|
- Output is generally 2-20+Mb files.
- Only 5 example trees.
- Doesn't seem to do non-tree plants.
|
 |
| Tree Professional
/ Tree Still, Tree Storm |
Pretty nice package from Onyx Computing, one of the
best commercial packages available |
- Standalone tree designer and well-integrated MAX plugin
- Has a great many features... Pruning, Bansai curving, etc.
|
- Only supports three plant types: Broadleaf, Conifer, and Palm
- Just not quite as good looking as XFrog
|
|
