Help wanted: how do I edit terrain clutter on maps?

[rogueranger1993 7]

I have several mod ideas I'd like to implement, and one of the big ones on my wish-list is an upgrade of the Desert v.4 terrain. It's already an awesome terrain, but I'd like to look it over and improve it with crazy insane levels of detail - my primary objective is to try and model the cities in their entirety, with actual city blocks and everything. Once that's done, I'd see about going further and adding functional lights all over, fields of scrub brush, and just general details that would go as deep as I could push things. In addition, I'd like to see about adding a new pair of target areas for a 1990 campaign I'd like to build someday.

So, with m,y goals laid out, I'm trying to figure out the easiest way to edit the target areas and terrain - all I really want to do is add new structures, clutter, and foliage to begin with, and maybe switch out two airfields with the new on GKABS is building once he releases it. My question here is, can anyone direct me to relevant tools and forum articles that would help me with this, or give me a rundown of the basics here if they aren't in other posts? In particular  I'd like a tutorial on how to place structures, foliage, and clutter objects in the most efficient manner, and a brief layout of the tools I need (as well as any 3rd party tools that might make things easier).

[Stratos 3,188]

Adding brushed and new blocks is perhaps the hardest part. One that need the edition trough the TK Terrain Editor, as you need to edit the TOD files. Use of the TK editor is a thing I never mastwred so I cannot help you. We now have the TFD terrain editor by Gerwin, and that's an amazing tool, wish he and Mue could create a tool to edit the TOD files.