The silver birch is Finland's national tree. Leafy, fragrant bunches of young silver birch boughs (called "vihta" or "vasta") are used to gently beat oneself while bathing in the Finnish sauna. Silver birch is often planted in parks and gardens, grown for its white bark and gracefully drooping shoots, sometimes even in warmer-than-optimum places such as Los Angeles and Sydney. In Scandinavia and other regions of northern Europe, it is grown for forest products such as lumber and pulp, as well as for aesthetic purposes and ecosystem services. It is sometimes used as a pioneer and nurse tree elsewhere.