The traditional way to forest bathe involves an actual forest, of course. However, I’d be remiss to dismiss the benefits of being in nature, even when you don’t have access to an actual forest.

And winter is a difficult time to make it to the forest for some. [Learn ways to embrace winter forest bathing anyway.]

If you’re not inside the forest, you may not be exposed to the specific phytoncides that trees give off, but you can still get therapeutic value from the other elements of nature, and probably many scientists haven’t identified yet.

Science shows the act of grounding, or standing on the ground barefoot, for example, produces antioxidant effects in the body and getting some vitamin D from sunlight provides all kinds of preventative benefits.

So we know we benefit from nature, scientifically and intuitively, whether under a dense stand of trees or not. Plus, nature offers relief from modern overload and mental nourishment in any of its forms.

Let’s explore several ways to receive the benefits of forest bathing without the dense canopy of forest.

7 Ways to Forest Bathe Without Trees

1. Practice garden medicine: gardening isn’t just a way to make your environment prettier, it’s also a real way to improve your wellbeing. First, gardening is a physical activity that can give you a pretty good workout. Also, when you work in the soil, you’re exposed to the beneficial microbiome that exists there. Finally, the colors of living growth, the exposure to the sun, the grounding effects of having your hands in the earth: these all provide profound mood-boosting effects right in your backyard.
2. Visit a botanical garden or greenhouse: most cities have a green oasis awaiting you somewhere inside their concrete bustle. Like gardening, botanical gardens and greenhouses offer exposure to life-giving natural elements. You can feel the positive effects the minute you step into the glass building. The temperature and sunlight invite you in, the quality of the air expands your breath, and the rawness of the green beauty there leaves you with a sense of balance and vitality.
3. Find one tree: most people aren’t far from a single tree, and that one tree can be a significant source of retreat. One single tree is enough to oxygenize and relax you, if you let it. Prop your spine against its trunk. Rest your ear against its bark. Hold its leaves in your hand. Climb into it if you’re nimble. Five minutes in a natural landscape like this can enhance mood and reduce stress, which we can all use. Pull up a tree and stay awhile!
4. Head to the meadow: think about the sounds that reverberate from the meadow in deep summer. The crickets, grasshoppers, katydids, toads, and other wildlife create a pleasing cacophony. Even in the absence of trees, that reverberations alone gives you a healing experience. The tranquility of a meadow environment is optimal for your mindfulness practice, so feel free to practice any of your invitations there. My own sit spot is more meadow than trees, but it isn’t any less replenishing than a certified therapy forest.
5. Take a sound bath: the idea of a sound bath shouldn’t be foreign if you understand the concept of a forest bath. Just like immersing yourself in the forest atmosphere, a sound bath is about surrounding yourself with pleasing sound. Scientists say the sounds of nature are ideal for sound baths, such as the meadow in the above example. If you don’t have access to a meadow or similar wild space, the next best thing is to listen to a recording of it. You can use sites like myNoise to give yourself a healing sound bath.
6. Use authentic aromas: Pure essential oils and infused oils literally encapsulate the essence of the forest in a bottle. In fact, Dr. Qing Li discovered Hinoki Cypress essential oil contains the healing phytoncides you get exposed to when forest bathing. You can purchase or make your own oils and incorporate them into your meditative practices to access some of the forest’s healing elements when the forest is inaccessible.
7. Pepper your space with indoor plants: Studies show the mere view of greenery has mood-enhancing effects for employees, cancer patients, post-op patients, and you. But you have to lift your eyes long enough to appreciate it. Start by adding green plants, even indoor trees, to your home or work environments. You may even incorporate a breathing room or Skogluft into your space. Then, set aside a sit spot inside your house next to your greenery to meditate and absorb the benefits.

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Now that you have several forest-less to forest bathe, let’s go over how to actually practice shinrin-yoku without the trees.

Forest Bathe Without the Forest Exercise:

Choose a natural space from above to have your session. Find a comfortable spot to sit or stand.
Set an intention. Think about what you’re doing this for, what you hope to get out of your practice. Do you need to relax? Get reprieve from the noise of your life or brain? Appreciate nature? The reason helps you connect to your practice in a more meaningful way.
Unplug. The overarching purpose of your practice is to eliminate distraction, so turn off all devices and get as far away from mechanical noises as possible. You won’t get much out of this if you look at your phone or wander a million miles away in thought.
Get grounded. Wiggle your bare feet into the grass or place your hands on top of the soil to ground into the earth.
Breathe deeply and slowly. Bring your focus to your breath as you lengthen and deepen your breathing. You may even close your eyes. The point is to switch from running on your overactive sympathetic nervous system to your relaxed parasympathetic nervous system.
Be mindful. Open your eyes and take in your environment with each of your five senses separately and then all at once. Where you direct your attention is important. Pay attention to what’s going on around you in nature rather than the ruminations of your mind.
Spend as much time enjoying your environment as you’d like. When you’re done, close your eyes and take a few grounding breaths before returning to your regular routine.

Nature provides so many potent benefits, with or without trees. It’s important to spend more time outdoors, whether you have direct access to a forest or not. Leverage what is available to you at any given moment and find respite in those quiet pockets of nature around you.

Note: I will keep adding to this library of forest bathing studies as I come across more research, so make sure to check back! Feel free to make suggestions too!

When I first learned about shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing, I was skeptical.

I knew there was something about nature that helped the world make sense.

But I kinda thought forest bathing was some kind of woo-woo thing one might scoff at.

But then I saw the evidence as I dug deeper.

I guess I didn’t really need evidence, intuition was enough to tell me that nature is restorative, but I’m a person who likes evidence.

If you are too, take a read through these studies that show that forest bathing, or nature bathing in general, is really powerful for the mind and body.

Forest Bathing Studies:

Proof that Nature Bathing is Good For You!

Emotional and Mental Health Benefits of Forest Bathing

This NEW German study shows 1hr in nature decreases amygdala activity, calming the emotional responses of fear and fight or flight.

This Netherlands study showed that green spaces helped intercept stress.

Another study in the US showed similar effects on stress reduction.

The sounds of nature help with relaxation more than meditation apps.

Nature sounds relax our bodies from fight-or-flight to rest-and-digest mode.

Even simulated forest environments with wood smells and sensations and forest sounds create a relaxation effect.

This study shows that negative emotions like sadness and anger were reduced after spending time in natural environments.

Research suggests that spending time in nature improves attention.

Researchers second that getting outside improves memory and focus, even in the dead of winter.

This study shows that forest settings create more positive emotions and heightened attention than urban settings.

This set of studies shows that forest bathing reduces cortisol levels, lowers pulse rate, lowers blood pressure, greater parasympathetic nerve activation, and less sympathetic nerve activation. In other words, forest bathing reduces all the symptoms of anxiety.

Self-discipline is higher for inner city children exposed to green landscapes.

Self-esteem and mood improve after just 5 minutes in a green natural space.

This study shows that children with attention deficit experience better concentration after walking through a park.

Forest bathing has been shown to reduce hostility and depression and increase liveliness.

Yep, it definitely makes you feel more alive!

Forest bathers enjoy less rumination, a marker of mental illness. Urbanization seems to correlate with higher mental illness rates, so the antidote seems to be more exposure to nature.

Forest environments have a pronounced relaxing effect on the human body. Subjects of this study felt comfort, calm and refreshed after viewing or walking in a forest area.

Live plants and window views increase job satisfaction in the workplace. There’s a valid reason we all want the window view! And a valid reason for employers it to give us!

Natural environments make us more caring, autonomous, and generous.

Spending time with your kid in a natural environment improves your relationships with your children.

Physical Benefits of Shinrin-Yoku

Two hours a week (24 minutes a day) is the optimal amount of time to spend in nature for health benefits. (Hey, that’s just about as much time as you should spend exercising too–why not double up and work out outside for monster benefits?)

Exercising outdoors may help reduce migraines, notably migraines caused by exercise.

Forest bathing improves immune function, helping the body fight off bugs. The study showed that one trip to the forest created a month’s worth of immune system improvement. It seems that inhaling phytoncides, the forests natural aromatherapy, plays a part in this immune response. You can also read more here.

A newer study shows the psychological and physiological benefits of forest bathing in bamboo forests. It appears to improve mood, increase oxygen levels, lower blood pressure, and increase immune function.

This set of studies recognizes the impact of forest bathing and natural environments on every one of our five senses. They studied each separately: touch, sound, sight, smell, and taste and found a positive effect with all of them. It pays to engage all five senses in your practice.

Those NK cells that forest bathing produces not only improve immune function, but even produce anti-cancer proteins.

The correlation between forest coverage and cancer death seems to indicate that people living in forest areas are less likely to die from some cancers.

If you get outside in the morning, the light helps re-calibrate your circadian rhythm, which is responsible for metabolism and energy, and may even help you lose weight.

Forest bathing improves cognitive function, including working memory. This study also confirms again the stress reduction provided by green landscapes.

If you weren’t convinced about that one, here’s another study showing it improves cognitive function and has a positive effect on depression.

Nature bathing makes you feel more alive!!!! Vitality and restoration. We can all use more of that!

Even just viewing a natural landscape from a hospital window helps patients recover from surgery!

This study shows the cardiovascular and metabolic benefits of walking in the forest.

One study shows that the more vegetation inner city occupants were exposed to, the lower levels of crime, aggression, and mental fatigue they experienced.

Along the same lines, the high vegetation that children in rural areas are exposed to seem to increase resilience to stress.

Diabetic patients experienced higher insulin sensitivity and lower blood glucose levels after walking in the forest.

Views of natural environments reduce cravings for food, cigarettes, and alcohol.

Time spent outdoors saves the world trillions of dollars in medical expenses.

Category: Forest bathing studies

Forest Bathe Without the Trees: 7 Ways to Try NOW