<p>Urban green spaces have positive effects on both physical and mental wellbeing. However, few studies have focused on the trends and thresholds of the effects of different influences on restorative benefits when viewing scenes featuring plant communities. We measured subjective evaluations and objective physiological data from 44 participants who viewed images of plant communities in the yellow to green hue range to compare differences in restorative benefits among plant communities at different visual distances, as well as quantifying the influencing factors involved. The following results were found: (1) Coniferous and multi-layered plant communities were found to provide greater restorative benefits, and the restorative benefits grew with increasing visual distance. (2) Shape and color characteristics were significantly correlated with restorative benefits, but the relationship is not simply linear. (3) The restorative benefits were found to be greatest when crown proportion was 61.23%, trunk proportion ranged from 4.11 to 13.70%, and the value of color index value ranged from 25.44 to 35.56%; the restorative benefits gradually increased when sky proportion exceeded 12.95–13.19%, the fractal dimension exceeded 1.62–1.67, and hue index exceeded 91.64°–95.67°; additionally, the restorative benefits decreased when the saturation index increased. This study provides a scientific basis for the construction and improvement of plant landscapes in urban green spaces.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>