Alien Invasion

It’s happening here in Virginia. We’ve seen the influx of more illegal and unwanted aliens. Their numbers are in the millions and growing. Trying to eliminate them by the usual methods isn’t working. Yep, the Spotted Lanternfly is causing problems and it’s going to get worse.

The Spotted Lanternfly is an invasive species, native to China and Vietnam. It first arrived in America in 2014 in Pennsylvania, probably via some kind of shipping container. Spreading slowly at first, it eventually arrived in Virginia a few years ago. Two years ago, there were none here at the farm. Last year we saw a few, and this year there are lots of them. 

The major concern is that they cause damage to some native plants, including grapes, soybeans and trees, particularly walnut and maple trees. “Nymphs and adults feed on plants, using their piercing mouthparts to suck sap from trunks and stems. This has been shown to cause stunted growth, localized damage, and reduced yields.” *. It has no known predators at this point, although some birds like to eat them. In my view, trying to kill them by hand (by smashing them) is fairly worthless at this point, as there are so many of them.

In an interesting twist, the Spotted Lanternfly’s favorite host is the “Tree of Heaven”, another invasive species! Originally from China, the Tree of Heaven was brought to America in the late 1700s as both a shade and an ornamental tree. Unfortunately, it can crowd out native species with its dense shade, AND with a toxin it spreads in the ground that inhibits other plants from growing nearby. As an added “feature”, it stinks in the Fall.

It’s tough to kill the Tree of Heaven. If they are small, you can pull them out. If they are bigger, you can pull them out with a tractor. If they are large trees, you can cut them down and apply poison to the stump, but its roots spread and develop shoots establishing many more trees. There are other ways to kill them, but they are more complicated and you must stay vigilant afterwards We have plenty of them here on the property and across the Virginia Piedmont. If you kill all of those on your property and your neighbor does nothing, you are going to have problems, as they produce a prolific number of seeds that spread in Autumn. Some folk call it the “Tree from Hell”, rather than the Tree of Heaven.

We are working on controlling both the Spotted Lanternfly and the Tree of Heaven, although it’s an ongoing battle. Maybe the Spotted Lanternfly is helping in the Tree of Heaven battle, but it’s hard to tell at this point. The Lanternfly is a beautiful insect. Unfortunately, the beauty is only skin deep.

Addendum:

• * The quote is from a Maryland government site. You can learn more here: https://mda.maryland.gov/plants-pests/Pages/spotted-lantern-fly.aspx