A grass bubble is a trapped pocket of water under the grass layer of your lawn.
Grass Bubbles typically happen on golf course turf where plastic beneath the sod traps water and forms a bubble, but they can develop in your yard.
Some grass bubbles contain methane gas from decomposing plants, but most are trapped water.
Please continue reading to learn more about grass bubbles, how they form, and how to prevent them.
In addition, you’ll find out what causes them to appear and why you mustn’t try to remove them yourself.
Table of Contents
How Do Grass Bubbles Form?
The primary cause of grass bubbles is excess moisture.
The soil underneath the grass has become saturated with too much rain or irrigation water.
When this happens, the ground becomes soft enough to allow air into the soil, which creates an area of low pressure below the surface.
Will Grass Bubbles Affect The Health Of Your Lawn?
Grass bubbles are not harmful in and of themselves, but they can be a symptom that your turf needs more aeration than it currently receives.
If you have noticed grass bubbles appearing on your lawn, there are several ways to correct them:
Aerate Your Lawn
This will remove some of the lower layers of sod and help aerate the topsoil to hold more water.
You may need a small tiller if you don’t own one already.
We recommend hiring a local professional to aerate your lawn before attempting it yourself.
Water Less
Reduce watering by 10% each week until the problem goes away.
Do not let your grass go completely dry during hot weather.
Wait until after sunset before irrigating again.
Also, make sure that any sprinklers are set at least 3 feet above the grass or turf.
Watering Schedule
Make sure that you follow a proper schedule when watering your lawn.
For example, wait two weeks between irrigations in the summer months.
In winter, wait three days between irrigations.
Always keep in mind that over-watering causes problems such as root rot.
Will Grass Bubbles Disappear Over Time?
Yes! As long as you don’t let your lawn get soggy again and keep it well-watered, the grass should recover from a bout of grass bubbling in no more than two weeks.
However, if you notice that the grass looks dry after two weeks, give it another good watering before letting it go longer between irrigations.
How To Prevent Grass Bubbling?
There are a few things you can do to help reduce your chances of having grass bubble problems:
1) Keep your lawn watered, and don’t let it get dry out between watering sessions.
This will keep the turf healthy and strong so that when there’s heavy rainfall, the grass won’t be as susceptible to damage from excessive amounts of water.
2) If possible, avoid using sprinklers during periods of high humidity.
Instead, use drip-irrigation systems to water your yard.
These systems work by sending small jets of water directly at the roots of plants rather than spraying them in all directions like traditional sprinkler heads.
They’re also more efficient because they only need one nozzle per square foot instead of hundreds of nozzles on each head.
3) Avoid over-irrigating your lawn.
What Besides Excessive Rainfall Could Create Grass Bubbles?
Grass bubbles are caused by a combination of factors, including but not limited to:
Excess Moisture
Excessive amounts of water in the topsoil can lead to grass bubbling and other problems such as root rot.
This occurs when the roots cannot absorb all the available oxygen from the surrounding atmosphere because they have been submerged under water.
As a result, the plant’s ability to take up nutrients decreases, causing it to wilt and die.
Poor Soil Quality
Poor quality soils will be more susceptible to erosion than good quality soils.
If your lawn suffers from poor drainage, you may need to add organic matter to improve its structure.
You should also consider adding sand if your soil lacks sufficient clay content.
Sand helps prevent the formation of puddles on the surface of the soil.
It also improves aeration allowing better absorption of fertilizer.
Can You Pop Grass Bubbles?
Yes! If you have a lawn that’s been sitting in wet conditions for several days, and it looks like there are small holes all over your yard, then you can pop those little pockets of air by simply walking on them.
This will help reduce any possible damage caused by these tiny voids.
You should also try to avoid stepping directly onto the spot where the bubble was created, as doing so may push out some of the surrounding dirt causing more problems than just popping the hole.
How To Prevent Grass Bubbles From Happening In Your Yard Again
If you want to prevent grass bubbles from happening again, make sure you don’t let your lawn sit in damp areas for extended periods.
Also, be careful when watering your lawn during hot weather because if you do not adequately drain the extra water away from the roots, they could end up being damaged.
Aerate Your Lawn For Drainage
Aeration is the process of breaking up compacted soil and creating channels for water to drain.
It’s a great way to improve your lawn, but knowing how much aerating you need or when to do it can be challenging.
If you have an established lawn that needs some help with drainage, aeration will make things better in no time at all.
Many people don’t even think about aerating their lawn until they see signs of problems like wet spots appearing on their grass.
But if you want to get more out of your yard, then you should consider doing regular aerations every year.
This helps prevent future issues from developing as well as making sure your existing lawn stays healthy.
I hope you enjoyed this post, check out another one on how to remove mushrooms from your yard.