Install
Install
The installation of release 2.0 has changed considerably from previous versions. The Grove now consists of two parts:
- the core module that runs the simulation and that actually grows your trees, and
- the Blender (or Houdini) add-on that adds a polished user interface and a bunch of awesome tools.
Please carefully follow the instructions that come with the add-on, in the form of the install.html file. These instructions will then also tell you where to place the core modules. If you get a warning message when you enable the add-on in Blender, you may have to restart Blender to have it find the core module. You should now be able to successfully enable the add-on.
Twigs
Your purchased twigs come in separate .zip files that you can download from your user profile. Unzip these and move the extracted folders to a master folder with a suiting name, something like TwigsLibrary. Point to this folder in your preferences. The Grove will search the folder and list all twigs in the twigs menu, from where you can simply pick one – the twig objects will be automatically appended to your working file.
If done correctly, your TwigsLibrary folder will have have a number of sub folders like AshTwig, FieldElmTwig and WillowOakTwig. Each of these folders contains the .blend files and a textures folder specific to that twig. Keep the structure of each twig folder intact. If you add new twigs to this folder, The Grove will automatically find them.
Bark textures
The Grove comes with a set of bark textures that you can download from your user profile. Simply unzip them and put all the image files into a single folder with a suiting name like BarkTexturesLibrary. Point to this folder in your preferences. The Grove will search the folder for image files and list them in the menu in the Build panel – simply pick one to assign it to your tree.
Some textures also come with a normal map. The Grove searches for normal maps in the same folder, so make sure to extract all image files into a single folder without sub folders.