Beacon, NY Tree Creates “Awesome Natural Phenomenon” During Latest Rainstorm

Ah, the great outdoors. A trip outside, with fresh air and wide open spaces, can be just what the doctor ordered. It can also be quite a learning experience.

Beacon New York Tree Starts to Bubble in the Rain

Over the rainy weekend, I was out and about walking my dog in Beacon New York. It was like every other walk, but a little more fast-paced since the pup isn't the biggest fan of the rain.

However, during one of my dog's sniff breaks near a tree, I saw something odd. The tree looked like it was bubbling. It was like there was soap left over in the tree and the rain just activated it creating a bunch of small bubbles. Take a look:

A  bubbling tree is not something you see every day. The bubbles were located in the middle of the tree and at the bottom by the trunk:

At this point, I moved my dog away from the strange bubbles and booked it inside. Then, I got right to Googling.. .

Tree Suds an "Awesome Natural Phenomenon"

Foaming Tree was not on my 2023 Bingo card, but here we are. I Googled exactly that and came across a blog post from 2020 on The Ohio State University website. According to a post on the Buckeye Yard Garden Online, I just witnessed an "awesome  natural phenomenon."

The post explains these bubbles are actually common and do no harm to the tree. They explain the whole process better than I ever could writing:

As rainwater trickles down the tree stem or trunk (called stemflow), it collects deposited dust particles (i.e. salts) and plant residues (i.e. acids) that have accumulated on the bark surfaces.  Bubbles are formed through the process of “stemflow mixing”.  As this dissolved, simple soap solution flows down the trunk, it encounters barriers and bumps, like bark plates, furrows, and ridges.  The solution is then tumbled, mixed and aerified, during its downward flow to the ground, generating the bubbles or soapsuds, which collect at the tree base.

The author adds there's no need to worry about foam on your tree and "In fact, it is an awesome natural phenomenon, so just sit back, relax, enjoy the rain and the bubbles!"

Pretty cool right? Have you ever seen a bubbling tree or tree suds?