The Spotted Lanternfly is a destructive insect that has invaded the Philadelphia area. All winter long, their eggs lay waiting for the warm weather, carefully encased in a protective, hardened layer of secretion. Now that they’ve emerge as nymphs, it’s time to take action! Read on to find out how to identify and combat Spotted Lanternfly in the Nymph stages.
How to Identify Spotted Lanternfly Nymphs
Spotted Lanternfly goes through several identities during its life cycle. Adult females lay eggs in the fall, and they cover the egg masses in a secretion. This secretion dries hard and camouflages to look like dirt or clay. The young nymphs that emerge from the eggs in spring are black with white spots. In early summer, they gain red markings on their bodies. Later in midsummer, they become adults and shed their skin to form wings on their backs.
How to Get Rid of Spotted Lanternfly Nymphs
The experts at Giroud Tree and Lawn have been working closely with Penn State University’s Department of Entomology and Cooperative Extension to determine the best treatments and techniques for combating Spotted Lanternfly in each of the life cycle stages. Chemical spray treatments are only recommended if there are high populations of nymphs on a specific plant or tree.
Hi. Essential Neem oil worked for me. I just happenened to have a tiny bottle of it that I bought a few years back and decided to try it on one particular fig tree where there are ALWAYS lanternflies…or as I like to call them “demonic mini monsters”. These mini monsters are always on the branches of this fig tree. I have other fig trees, but they don’t seem to bother them as much. This particular tree is in the sunniest spot. I have no idea if that makes a difference or not. In any case, i put a little of the neem oil on my hands and physically rubbed it directly onto the branches. I was so shocked not to see any lanternflies on that tree for about a week or so. And that was even after quite a few days of rain! New ones did eventually come back, however. I also tried other essential oils, such as Lavender (only because I ran out of Neem) and they seemed to work too, but I don’t think they worked as well as Neem. Last year I tried Food Grade DE, but it had absolutely no effect. I don’t use pesticides or poisons of any kind, so I always try to find natural alternatives to problems, whenever necessary.
Hi Paulette! Isn’t that funny how just the one tree seemed to attract Spotted Lanternfly? There’s still so much we need to learn about this insect. We’re glad to hear the Neem oil worked for you! Thanks for sharing your story with us. Have a great day!
My husband goes out with a shallow painter’s pan of soapy water and flicks the nymphs into it. He can knock 3-5 at a time and has taken out many both last year and this with this technique.
That’s great, Terry! Thanks for the tip. Good luck in the fight!
Do you think diamtaceous earth would kill the nymphs
Hi Robert, we have not heard that this is an effective method for killing the nymphs. We are periodically checking in with Penn State to see if they have any updated recommendations. If they do, we will be sure to report it here! Thanks for your questions, and good luck in the fight!
Hi, I live in Ewing NJ and wondering if this is outside your area to come inspect? Like others, I’ve seen the nymphs on vines in my yard. I’m not sure what to do about them. In the area where I did spot them, it’s pretty overgrown with vines. We have one trap that we can put on a tree, but how do you determine where to put it when we have so many trees? Thank you.
Hi Michelle!
We are sorry to hear you’re having a problem with SLF this year. Unfortunately, we do not service NJ. We recommend checking out treesaregood.org for an ISA Certified Arborist to help you out. Good luck!
Ok. Thank you.
They are on our roses by hords
Oh no! So sorry to hear that, William! If you’re in our service area and would like an inspection, give us a call 215-682-7704. We’re happy to help!
Will a sprinkling of diatomaceous earth kill them?
We have not heard that is an effective treatment, Cheryl. The nymphs move from plant to plant so quickly!
In a desperate move to stop the hordes of nymphs climbing three trees in my yard, I tried a DIY method by wrapping the trees with plain old duct tape, sticky side out. It worked great and can be changed frequently because I have a large roll of it. Just an idea for anyone with a limited budget or the need to do something fast.
Great idea, Leslie! Just be sure to cut the tape lengthwise if it’s wide to prevent accidentally catching small mammals and birds. If you’re in our area, give us a call and we can give you a free evaluation to get those buggers when they turn into adults 😉
I am finding them on back siding of townhouse & our back deck. I have purchased couple milkweed plants for the deck, I heard it is toxic to them. What can I do to help control them on our deck/siding?
Hi Terri- If they are crawling up your siding, you could put sticky bands on your siding to catch them as they walk up. However, you will want to cover the sticky band in a mesh or cage. This will prevent small mammals, such as bats, birds, and squirrels, from becoming trapped on the sticky tape. If you’re in our service area, we can send one of our arborists out to evaluate your property and create a proposal for treatment when the nymphs turn into adults. Give us a call at 215-682-7704 to schedule that free appointment. Thanks for your question!
I found nymphs on our church property in Cheltenham, but they seem to be confined to wild grape vines. I’ve been using tape wrapped around my hand to catch them.
Hi Susan, that sounds like a fun technique. How are your grapes holding up? Give us a call if you’d like us to evaluate the property for treating the Spotted Lanternfly when they turn into adults- 215-682-7704.
Hi, Anyway someone can come out and ‘check’ my property to evaluate for spotted lantern fly/nymphs?
sorry, I thought this was a way to send a private message.
Right now, the nymphs are up high on vines, all over the stems. I simply mix up a batch of dishwasher soap and water in my sprayer and spray all the leave and vines. Next day all dead and plants are clean.
Hi Joe! We’ve also heard of the dishwasher soap mixture, along with some other DIY formulas. We hear mixed results. It’s not a method recommended by the researchers at Penn State or the PA Department of Agriculture, however, if it works for you, that’s great! We would just advise everyone to be careful that whatever is going into your DIY mixture does not have an adverse effect on your plants or beneficial insects like pollinators. Please give us a call at 215-682-7704 if you would like one of our ISA Certified Giroud Arborists to evaluate your property to create a plan of attack for when the nymphs turn into adults. Good luck!
I have used “Home Defender spray” around the trunk of the tree, below the tape and have hundreds of dead and dying flys on the ground around the tree in addition to those stuck to the tape. Comments?
Hi Gary, I think you may be referring to “Home Defense.” We are not familiar with the product since it is formulated for home use. However it does appear to contain Bifenthrin, an ingredient recommended for Spotted Lanternfly control. While the product killed the pest on contact, you’ll need to monitor how long it lasts on the tree. Your use of tree bands is an excellent strategy for capturing Spotted Lanternfly in the nymph stages (May-July). Just be sure to change the bands every two weeks and cut them in half longwise to prevent accidentally trapping small animals. Giroud’s Spotted Lanternfly control program is based on the latest research by Penn State and the PA Department of Agriculture. Research has shown that pesticide treatments are most effective in the adult stage from July through November. You might also want to start checking your property for egg masses. Scraping them off now will help stop future generations. For more information on how to control this pest, check out: https://giroudtree.com/spotted-lanternfly/spotted-lanternfly-control/ Hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions.