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Abstract
Urban green spaces like pocket parks allow city dwellers to disconnect from their day-to-day lives. It is important to understand how designers can use planting design to make urban green spaces more relaxing and promote restorativeness. Little is known about how naturalness within pocket parks can impact users' perceived restorativeness. An experimental research design implemented three pocket park environment experiences with varying levels of planting naturalness using virtual reality. A post-survey measured perceived naturalness and perceived restorativeness within the urban landscapes. Findings revealed that site users’ perceived naturalness is correlated with perceived restorativeness and that facets of restorativeness vary across environments. Results imply that different planting designs can influence users perceived restorativeness.