If you don't have a forest nearby, your backyard may still help you feel better

RE Resources Team By RE Resources Team cleveland.com
on April 16, 2017 at 8:00 AM
"Allow yourself to notice what you really enjoy about your garden. " - M. Amos Clifford

It's called "forest bathing," but it is probably not what you think. The practice has nothing to do with leaving your tent and sprinting to the cold shower supplied by a campsite facility. It also is not frolicking sans clothing through a woods, although we're not saying that wouldn't be fun.

Forest bathing, known as shinrin-yoku in Japanese, encourages us to visit a natural area to let the restorative benefits of the trees and pure air calm and rejuvenate our stressed-out bodies and minds. (More about that later.) It is a kind of forest therapy, an ancient, innate practice we seem to have lost along the way. Ideally, we should all be able to visit magnificent forests with centuries-old trees and picnic under stately large oaks. But for most of us in today's world, those experiences are limited. But don't despair.

"I have successfully practiced this in personal gardens, garden courtyards, city parks and retirement communities," said M. Amos Clifford, founder of the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs, which supports shinrin-yoku and trains forest therapy guides worldwide. 

With a little planning, a simplified version of forest therapy can happen in back yards, rooftop gardens and even balconies and patios filled with potted ornamental trees. Consumers who are buying new home construction can work with a landscape architect who is familiar with forest therapy to create a serene outdoor setting. Or homeowners can go the DIY route, often with good results. Homebuyers who love the existing house they just purchased, but realize its yard and garden leave a lot to be desired, may also wish to create more of a tranquil environment.  

Forest bathing in its latest form was introduced in Japan by that country's forest ministry in 1982 and actually was a promotion for topiary therapy. But the term spread around the world, primarily becoming associated with trees. A number of scientific studies have shown trees give off organic compounds that aid our immune systems. According to The Forest Therapy Association of the Americas, phytoncide is an antimicrobial substance emitted by trees and other plants to protect themselves from insects and germs. The essential oil may be one contributor to the beneficial effects of forest bathing.

4-16-17--Sunday Cover--Meditation Gardens--Treetops.jpgCreate a space in your backyard to relax and de-stress.  

Forest bathing proponents say not to take a phone, book or camera into the forest or your backyard sanctuary, but to let your senses take over in nature. They suggest walking slowly (mo stressful hiking) through the forest or your designated backyard area), touching trees and listening to even the tiniest of sounds and faintest of scents.

"We are so intensely caught up in thinking or worrying about the future or caught up in the past. Any time you can pay attention to your senses you are in the present, here and now," said Clifford. "It helps to re-set your nervous system so the effect of stress is reduced."

(For those who can't sit still very long, Germany's version of forest therapy, called Kneipp therapy, includes a requirement that participants add some sort of physical exercise to their walk. So you can do a few jumping jacks in a forest clearing or the middle of your backyard if you prefer this type.)

Clifford believes even a small space can work and recommends "place tending," the practice of taking care of and showing tenderness toward a favorite tree, flowerbed, water garden or even a group of container plants.

"Usually the discovery people that people make when they tend to a place for awhile is that they start to feel that the place really tends to them," said Clifford.

Clifford has several suggestions for creating a successful residential forest therapy area. (In other words, a quiet place you can temporarily put your job, your kids, you spouse and your bills on hold.) Those ideas include:

* "Plant trees. I personally prefer multiple trees. Learn how trees in your bioregion like to associate with each other. Give them a little family, and it doesn't have to be all the same species."

* "I encourage using plants that are native to your area. Native plants are compatible to other critters in your bioregion. For example, migrating birds are used to a certain kind of plant or forest and may depend on it for survival. As we have more and more habitat loss, we can make up for some of that by having those things in our gardens."  

* "Get to know the birds in your garden. You don't have to become a big bird watcher or fanatic. But getting to know them is a first step to knowing who lives in your garden. Even in urban areas you can have raccoons or coyotes. Knowing what's there is a sense of connection to nature. You may not notice very much the first time you are out there. But after a few times you notice certain birds keep showing up. And you think, 'Why do they like it here?' You may find you have nesting birds in your yard." 

* "Allow yourself to notice what you really enjoy about your garden and use that as a guide to further develop it."

Dedicating part of a backyard or garden to forest bathing is just one way to create a soothing, peaceful residential sanctuary. Other methods include feng shui, zen gardens or water gardening. The use of arbors, gazebos, winding paths and teahouses can all be part of a tranquil landscape.

And what a good sign it is for home sellers when, after a tour of your home, inside and out, a potential buyer says,  "I feel so comfortable and relaxed in this yard. I'd love to just come out here and sit..."   

