Traditional use of plants in a sweat bath

Date: 2025-02-18, 21:00
Organizer : Lithuanian Bath Academy

The renowned webinar on Sauna Plants is back!

As you may already know from the "Laws of a Healthy Sauna" series, an authentic Northern European sauna is unimaginable without the use of plants: aromatic whisks, herbal steam infusions, medicinal teas, and a variety of botanical preparations. In Lithuanian sauna traditions, plants play a particularly vital role.
The moment you step inside, you are welcomed by the soothing aroma of dried leaf whisks.

Bundles of fragrant herbs hanging from the ceiling serve more than just an aesthetic purpose. Beyond these, there are also mysterious ointments, tinctures, extracts, oils, powders, and other pirtis alchemy wonders that experienced sauna masters handle with skill, creating a full sensory experience. Curious? This webinar is designed precisely to introduce you to sauna plants and their applications.

This abundance often surprises first-time visitors to a Lithuanian sauna. For newcomers, many questions arise:

• Which plants are suitable for use in the sauna, and which should be avoided?What are the best plants for making sauna whisks?
• What is the correct size and shape for a proper whisk?
• How to distinguish a good whisk from an ineffective one?
• How should whisks be prepared for use?
• What herbal preparations can be made from plants?
• When should different plants be harvested?
• How can herbs be preserved for winter while maintaining their aroma and benefits?
• Which plants should not be brought into the sauna?

The connection between Celtic and Baltic plant traditions

The use of plants in steam baths is not unique to Lithuania but has deep historical roots across Europe. The ancient Celts, much like the Balts, revered trees and herbs, believing them to be channels of healing and spiritual purification. Sacred groves and herbal remedies were central to Druidic practice, where birch, oak, and mistletoe were considered especially potent. These traditions echo the Lithuanian sauna’s use of plant-based infusions, bringing harmony between body and spirit.

As Pliny the Elder noted in Naturalis Historia:
"Medicina simplex in herbis est, quarum vis mirabilis corporum sanitatem restituit." ("The simplest medicine lies in herbs, whose wondrous power restores the health of the body.")

Why Join This Webinar?

This is a two-hour theoretical course covering the most commonly used sauna plants and their preparations, along with practical tips.
We will explore the most popular plants used in the sauna:

Deciduous Trees: Birch, Oak, Maple, Linden, Rowan, Aspen.
Coniferous Trees: Juniper, Fir, Spruce.
Herbs: Wormwood, Mugwort, Meadowsweet, Chamomile , Nettle
...and many more...

After completing this webinar, you will receive a personal knowledge assessment questionnaire, certification confirming your expertise in the topic, and access to a collection of exclusive recipes and tips that you can immediately apply in your sauna practices!

Other webinars that might be interesting to you:

• „Sweat bath ABC“ February 18th 7PM GMT
• „Fundamantals of whisking in sauna“ February 25th 7PM GMT

Themes covered

• Advanced sauna ethnobotany

  This is an advanced module for sauna practitioners, wellness instructors, and plant enthusiasts wishing to develop a more in-depth knowledge of plants used in Lithuanian pirtis. We explore the details of how various trees and herbs are selected, harvested, processed, and applied in sauna ceremonies and treatments—drawing from folk medicine, plant science, and field practice.

  The course focuses on the cultural significance of and physiologic influence of plants within the sauna environment.

  This theme has additional information available only to logged in users.
• Introduction to sauna plants

  Step into the fragrant world of the Lithuanian steam bath, where plants are not just decoration—they are inherent to the sensory, therapeutic, and ritualistic character of the pirtis. In this introductory course, students become acquainted with the overall types of herbal preparations utilized in sauna culture: whisks, infusions, decoctions, fragrant extracts, and more.

  You'll learn how sauna plants have been used traditionally to promote health and mood—from calming herbal teas to fragrant brooms hung over the hot bench.

  This theme has additional information available only to logged in users.

Birute Masiliauskiene, Lithuanian Bath Master