from Penn State Master Gardeners of Bucks County:
๐๐๐๐ฎโ๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ง๐! Are you seeing spotted lanternfly (SLF) adults on your maples, birches, or willows? When early fall arrives, the spotted lanternflyโs favorite food, ๐๐ช๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ฉ๐ถ๐ด ๐ข๐ญ๐ต๐ช๐ด๐ด๐ช๐ฎ๐ข, commonly referred to as tree of heaven, goes into senescence, meaning that it stops moving sap and drops its leaves. This is about the same time spotted lanternflies can be seen moving in large numbers onto other trees. Although this can be alarming, the presence of large numbers of SLF on landscape trees is generally more of a nuisance than a grave threat to the trees.
SLF is now considered to be a plant stressor, that in combination with other stressors (e.g. other insects, diseases, adverse weather) can cause damage to a tree. The SLF alone are not likely to kill a previously healthy mature tree although some branch dieback may result. Death has only been noted in tree saplings, tree-of-heaven, and grapevines. Only after heavy feeding, multiple years of sustained damage, or in particularly dry years may SLF cause significant damage to ornamental and shade trees.
Penn State recommends using an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach, first taking the numbers of SLF present into account and then using the least-toxic effective methods before more toxic ones whenever possible. With the spotted lanternfly, try mechanical methods first:
โงYou can eliminate a lot of SLF by destroying their eggs over the winter months (smash or scrape them into alcohol.)
โง Swatting/squashing SLF within reach is an easy option.
โง You can even vacuum SLF off trees!
โง Traps can be used to kill them and possibly reduce infestation on your trees during this time (until a hard frost kills the adult SLFโs). The recommended trap for SLF is a funnel-style trap called a “circle trap.” You can find instructions as to how to build a circle trap at the following link: https://extension.psu.edu/how-to-build-a-new-style…
Sticky bands, which capture SLF in sticky material as they move up the tree, have also been used to capture SLF. However, these are NOT recommended because this sticky material is not selective and can capture other animals, including pollinators, butterflies, birds, squirrels, and more. Sticky bands should never be used without a wildlife barrier installed around them. Additionally, ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ด๐ต๐ถ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ข๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ง๐ง๐ฆ๐ค๐ต๐ช๐ท๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ด๐ด ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ธ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ณ๐ข๐ฑ๐ด, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ช๐ณ๐ค๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ณ๐ข๐ฑ ๐ธ๐ข๐ด ๐ง๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ง๐ง๐ฆ๐ค๐ต๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ต๐ณ๐ข๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ข๐ฅ๐ถ๐ญ๐ต ๐๐๐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ธ๐ข๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ต๐ช๐ค๐ฌ๐บ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ!
As a last resort, there are many chemical options for killing SLF. These options and application methods are provided in the Penn State โSLF Management Guideโ found at the following link: https://extension.psu.edu/spotted-lanternfly-management… Please note, these chemical options do NOT include home remedies. Because home remedies use products that may already be in your home, some people assume they are safer. For example, a common home remedy uses dish detergent or antibacterial soap mixed with other products to control insects on plants. These products may contain additives that could harm the environment. The dish detergent label does not provide any directions on how to use it on plants to control insects, and whether it might harm beneficial insects (such as ladybugs) or the environment. ๐๐ฅ๐ง๐๐ฎ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ข๐ ๐ง๐๐ข๐๐๐๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐ค๐ฃ ๐ฅ๐ก๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐จ ๐ค๐ฃ ๐ ๐จ๐ช๐ฃ๐ฃ๐ฎ ๐๐๐ฎ ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ฃ๐๐ช๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ก๐๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐๐ฎ ๐๐ช๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฉ๐จ ๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐๐จ. .
Content by: Colleen Michaels, Penn State Master Gardener, Bucks County.References: Joseph A Francese, Miriam F Cooperband, Kelly M Murman, Stefani L Cannon, Everett G Booth, Sarah M Devine, Matthew S Wallace. Developing Traps for the Spotted Lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae) Environmental Entomology, Volume 49, Issue 2, April 2020, Pages 269โ276, https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvz166 PSU Fact Sheet: Avoid Home Remedies to Control Spotted Lanternfly.