Spotted Lanternfly Control in Pennsylvania

Spotted Lanternfly Control

The spotted lanternfly is an invasive planthopper under a Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture quarantine. Egg masses and host trees are where treatment starts.

The spotted lanternfly is not native to North America and was first identified in Pennsylvania, which is why the state Department of Agriculture operates a quarantine intended to slow its spread. It feeds on sap from a wide range of plants and excretes honeydew, which then grows sooty mold, and that combination is what damages plants and coats decks, furniture and vehicles beneath an infested tree.

Its preferred host is tree of heaven, itself an invasive species, and identifying whether you have one on or near the property changes the whole picture. Treatment tends to focus on host trees, on the egg masses laid on hard surfaces from autumn onward, and on the nymph stages as they move up trunks in spring and early summer.

Egg masses matter more than most people realise. They are laid on tree trunks, stone, garden furniture, equipment and vehicles, look like a smear of grey-brown mud, and each one contains a substantial number of eggs. Scraping them off over winter genuinely reduces next season's population, and it is something a property owner can do without any treatment at all.

Who it is for

Property owners seeing large numbers of lanternflies on trees, decks and walls from mid-summer into autumn..

What you get

• Host trees identified, particularly tree of heaven on or near the property
• Egg masses located and dealt with, since removing them reduces next season directly
• Nymph and adult stages treated according to the time of year
• Guidance on the Pennsylvania quarantine and on not moving material that carries eggs

Serving Ardmore, Berwyn, Blue Bell, Broomall, Bryn Mawr, Collegeville, Glen Mills, Horsham, King of Prussia, Malvern, Media, Newtown Square, Paoli, Springfield, Wayne. Call to book an inspection.